American Import
by LittleMissMuffet13
Summary: When Samantha Nimbus is informed that she is leaving her beloved Salem Institute for Hogwarts, she is suddenly thrust into a world of new faces and new experiences. When she meets the cocky Fred Weasley, however, she is in for a tumultuous ride!
1. Sam

**Chapter 1**

**Sam**

Samantha smoothed the front of her shirt nervously as she sat in her massive bedroom. In the corner of her room, her white dog Unna was lazing in the sunshine that was streaming in through the large bay windows. As if on cue, her mother and father walked through the door and smiled dotingly at their only child. "What's going on?" Samantha asked cautiously.

"Well," her mother began, her large blue eyes focusing on her daughter's brown "we have some exciting news Samantha!" Her father smiled down at her, his neatly trimmed beard accenting his kind face. Samantha eyed her parents shrewdly, suspiciously, encouraging her mother to continue. "We know how eager you are continue at Salem-" Samantha's heart sank a bit. She didn't like where this conversation was heading. Samantha was preparing to enter her sixth year at the Salem Witches' Institute in Massachusetts where she was the top of her class.

"And we know you love attending Salem-" her father continued on the trail where her mother left off. "But we think it's time for you to be properly – er – socialized," he finished awkwardly

"Socialized," Samantha repeated dryly. Her mother nodded eagerly, her blue eyes shining.

"We're sending you to Hogwarts for your last two years!" Her mother said this as happily as if Samantha had won a cauldron full of Galleons. Samantha narrowed her eyes at her mother. "Oh dear, don't look so disappointed," she lilted. "It will be good for you to see a new part of the world, to meet new people, and, for once, to actually go to a coed school."

"But I'm top of my class at Salem," Samantha began, hoping her parents had, in their temporary madness, forgotten this fact.

"Precisely why you need a change of scenery," her father said happily. "You've become too comfortable at Salem. It's time for a challenge!"

"We'll be leaving for London tomorrow-" her mother began.

"But tomorrow is Adri's birthday! And the semester starts in a week!" Samantha whined. Her father sighed deeply.

"Sammy," he began, "it's time for you to get out there and see the world." He patted his daughter on the head as if she was still a toddler, ruffling her soft brown hair before heading for the door. "Start packing. We leave early. Oh, and your first _term_ at Hogwarts begins in two days."

"Make sure you bring anything you'll want for the school year from home," her mother chirped as she flitted out the door with her father.

Samantha sat dumbfounded on her bed for a full five minutes after her parents had left. _Leave Salem?_ ...she thought _They must be insane. _Samantha stood up, her body heavy, and walked to her mirror. She examined her reflection closely. While not immediately striking, Sam had a certain girl next door quality that earned her many second looks when she encountered the opposite sex. She had long brown hair, big, deep brown eyes, and skin that had been sunkissed from many hours outdoors with her father. She had a slender, toned body accented by what her mother had deemed as "lovely, hereditary curves." Since before she could walk, her father had insisted that he take Sam along on all of his outdoor pursuits. Her dresser was littered with photos of her and her father kayaking in Lake Tahoe, hiking in the Grand Canyon, and, the most recent and impressive, a photo of her and her father at the summit of Mount McKinley. Sam was smiling broadly and waving animatedly at the camera while her father had one of his burly arms draped over her shoulders, looking exhausted but proud. Sam's favorite of these, though, was the photo of her very first ride on her very first pony, Marbles. She was giggling excitedly while her father, his long, brown beard (that, along with his penchant for flannel shirts and jeans, often made him look like a lumberjack) hiding his face, was holding two year old Sam around her waist. Since that first pony ride fourteen years ago, Samantha had become quite an accomplished equestrienne. Her many medals and trophies sat proudly on a shelf above her dresser along with her father's favorite photo which, coincidentally, was the one Samantha was least keen on displaying: it was a photo of Samantha's first ride on a Nimbus broom. She was flailing pathetically, unable to get a firm enough grip. _Ironic, really, _Samantha thought bitterly to herself _Isaac Nimbus' own daughter can't even sit up straight on a broom_. Even though Samantha's grandfather had founded the Nimbus Racing Broom Company when Sam's father had been a boy, and Sam came from a long line of successful Quidditch players, she had no talent for flying whatsoever. Sam sighed as she gathered up her photos (even the one of her on the broom, as she knew she'd receive it by owl if she didn't bring it with her) and placed them gently onto her bed. She pulled her old trunk out from under her bed and resigned herself to packing her things before bed, preparing to travel half way around the world the next morning.

The next morning, Sam was awoken by an urgent tapping on her large window. She sat up, half asleep, and stumbled towards the window, accidentally treading on Unna's tail on the way, the dog waking with a loud yelp. Samantha looked down at her faithful pet guiltily and patted her on the head. When Sam opened her curtains, the early morning sunlight flooded her green and yellow room. She saw her best friend Adrienne's owl perched on the sill. Sam opened her window and untied the note around the shiny black owl's outstretched leg. "Thanks, Obsidian," she yawned as she gave the owl a friendly scratch under his wing. The owl cooed back happily as Sam read the note:

_Sammy,_

_ Just heard the news. Coming over ASAP to stop whatever is going on. Are your parents crazy? See you soon._

_ Adri_

As soon as Sam was about to send Obsidian back to Adri with a response, the sound of the large knocker on the front door echoed through the quiet house. Sam sighed and headed out of her room and down the enormous spiral staircase to her front door. She shuddered as her bare feet hit the ice cold marble of her house's front room. As soon as she had opened the front door, her best friend Adrienne Whitehorn came bounding inside, her blonde curls bouncing excitedly. "_What_ in the world is going on?" she squealed.

"My parents are sending me to Hogwarts," Sam stated simply. Her voice contained none of the excited indignation of Adrienne's. Adrienne, apparently aghast at the fact that Sam wasn't taking this as seriously as receiving a Dementor's Kiss, replied "And you're actually _going?_" Sam was about to reply when she heard footsteps heading down the stairs. Adrienne's boisterous entrance had woken her parents.

"Hello Adri." Sam's father greeted Samantha's oldest friend as if she were a member of the family, his booming voice betraying any traces of tiredness. Sam's mother, Anna, followed behind her husband still wearing her nightgown.

"Good morning Adrienne," she said sleepily. "Are you hungry?"

"Hungry? _Hungry?_" she screeched. "How can I think about food when my best friend is _leaving_ forever? As a matter of fact," she continued in a low whisper, "I believe this calls for a hunger strike." The Nimbuses had grown accustomed to Adrienne's flair for the dramatic. Mr. Nimbus smiled at her good-naturedly and led her and his daughter to the kitchen. Mrs. Nimbus took a seat at the driftwood table that sat in the large kitchen and conjured up four large mugs of coffee as Mr. Nimbus began frying bacon.

"Hogwarts will be good for Sam," Mrs. Nimbus said, smiling lovingly at her daughter.

"But she's number one in our class at Salem!" Adri protested as she stirred cream into her coffee.

"It'll be ok, Adri. You'll still have Megan and Krista," Sam said in a soft voice that matched her mother's. Megan and Krista were Adri and Sam's two closest friends away from home.

"But it won't be the _saaaaame_," Adri continued dramatically. "They haven't known me as long as you have!" Indeed, Sam and Adri had practically been joined at the hip ever since their mothers had met during a shopping trip at Paul Revere's Potion Supplies when the girls were just toddlers. Mr. Nimbus joined the women at the table, carrying a large plate of bacon and fried eggs. The plates he had bewitched to float behind him settled on the table in front of each of them.

"It'll be good for Sam to meet new people," he said as he served the two girls large portions of eggs and bacon.

"Oh!" Adri exclaimed, a thought occurring to her suddenly "There are _boys_ at Hogwarts, aren't there?" Sam rolled her eyes. Ever since kindergarten, Adrienne had a habit of chasing boys. Even now, she was dating at least two different boys. Adrienne, with her long, blonde curly hair, her emerald green eyes, and her curvy body, never had any trouble attracting the opposite sex. Sam had always taken a more modest approach. She had only ever had one boyfriend, something that Adri liked to bring up at every opportunity. Although her friends had always been encouraging about meeting new guys, Sam had her own reasons for not wanting to jump into a relationship too quickly. "Sam," she continued breathlessly, "you'll get to meet _British _boys!" Sam tucked in to her breakfast, trying to ignore her best friend chirping on about all of the expansive dating opportunities at Hogwarts.

After a quick breakfast, Sam and Adri headed up to Samantha's bedroom to finish some last minute packing. Well, Sam did most of the packing as Adri flopped onto Samantha's bed and rifled through the stuff in Sam's nightstand. "Unna," Sam called to her large white dog who had changed sleeping under the window for sleeping on a pile of Sam's clean clothes. The dog stirred and glared sleepily at Samantha. "It's time to wake up. We're leaving." Unna yawned and rolled over. Sam sighed as she attempted to pull her favorite cardigan out from under the dog. "Well," Sam said to Adri after she had packed the last of her clothes, "I guess it's time." Adri pouted up at her from the bed and begrudgingly got up to see her best friend off, Unna following Sam as she headed down. They walked out to the large, manicured front lawn where Sam's parents were waiting patiently. Her father bewitched the luggage so that it fit easily inside of Mrs. Nimbus' purse, and waited for her daughter to say goodbye to her friend. "Promise you'll write me every day to tell me how things are going at Salem," Sam demanded.

"Of course," Adri squeaked through the tears that were now streaming down her porcelain face. "And you write me as soon as you get there and tell me all about Hogwarts." Sam swore she would do exactly that, embraced her friend tightly, and joined her parents next to the old candy wrapper that would act as their portkey. Sam waved sadly to her best friend, grabbed hold of the portkey with one hand and her dog's collar with another, and, before she even had time to say another goodbye, she was on her way to England.

Despite Sam's opposition to leaving her beloved Salem Institute, she couldn't deny that she was excited to see wizarding London. The portkey had dropped the family right behind the Leaky Cauldron, near the entrance to Diagon Alley. Samantha was excited to begin exploring the shops as soon as they arrived, but her parents insisted that they check in to their rooms and get some rest before heading out. Sam sighed, annoyed at her parents, and followed them into the Leaky Cauldron and sat down at a small table for dinner. The owner of the Leaky Cauldron who introduced himself as Tom served them all large mugs of pumpkin juice, collected their luggage and Unna, and assured the Nimbuses that everything would be waiting for them in their rooms. Sam began looking around at the warmly lit dining room, taking in all the different characters who were surely regulars at the pub. That was when she saw him. Sitting amongst a large group of people, many of whom had flaming red hair, was a tall, athletic looking boy whose red hair hung in front of his mischievous brown eyes. He caught Sam's eye, noticing she was looking at him, and smiled slyly at her. Sam felt her cheeks flush and she turned away, quickly engrossing herself in her father's conversation about the Bulgarian Quidditch team's order of Firebolts.

Fred Weasley was sitting at a large dinner table in the Leaky Cauldron with his family and the members of the Order of the Phoenix. As the adults' conversation turned to the current state at the Ministry of Magic, Fred began lazily looking around the room. His brother George was talking to Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, while his youngest brother, Ron, was talking to Tonks about her shapeshifting abilities. As Fred's gaze casually drifted to the door of the Leaky Cauldron, he saw three people enter the dining room. He took in the appearance of a large man with a brown beard, a small woman with large, blue eyes, and trailing behind them . . . Fred elbowed his twin, who turned to him with a questioning look. Fred muttered under his breath, "Look, over there." George took in Sam's appearance. Her tan, toned legs were covered by a pair of denim shorts, and her turquoise tanktop was accentuating her curves. She had her long brown hair tied back into a ponytail, revealing her high cheekbones and large, brown eyes. "She's something, isn't she?" Fred said, almost hungrily. Since his first year at Hogwarts, Fred Weasley had gained a bit of a reputation for being a bit of a shameless woman chaser. George nodded in agreement.

"She's definitely no Pansy Parkinson," he said, though his enthusiasm over the girl's looks were no match for Fred's. Fred watched her as she sat down with her family, examining the way she took in her surroundings. Her eyes were bright, intelligent, sharp. Just as Fred was drinking in the sight of what he had convinced himself would be his new conquest, Tonks had clumsily knocked over her glass of pumpkin juice, pulling Fred's eyes away from the girl momentarily. When he looked back, however, he noticed she was looking too. Fred smiled at her and she quickly turned back, her cheeks turning pink. The new color to her face made her even more attractive to Fred, who continued to watch her as she conversed with her parents. _I'm going to have you_, he thought at Sam. _I'm going to have you and you're going to love it_.

Sam ate her soup quickly, eager to escape the dining room and the red-haired boy's piercing stare. As soon as she was finished, she informed her parents she was heading outside to venture into Diagon Alley. "I don't think so, Sammy," her father said. "It's pretty late and we should probably hit the hay. We'll go shopping tomorrow." Sam checked her watch and noticed that it was nearly nine o'clock. Hardly what a seventeen year old girl would consider late, but she knew her father would have them all up with the sun for an early breakfast and even earlier shopping. Sam began walking up the stairs and, before she reached the middle of the staircase, chanced a backwards glance at the red-haired boy. She noticed with horror that he was staring at her again. She rushed upstairs after her parents, her cheeks flushing. Sam bid her parents goodnight and hurried into her room. Unna was stretched out on Sam's bed, sleeping peacefully. As Sam undressed and began to change into a soft pair of volleyball shorts and a white T-shirt for bed, she couldn't shake the image of the boy from downstairs. There was something . . . odd about the way he had been staring at her . . . something . . . _predatory. _She lay down on the bed and sank into the feather comforter. She continued to think about the boy as she began to drift in and out of sleep. Finally, she yawned deeply and fell asleep.

It seemed that Sam had only just closed her eyes when the loud rapping on her door told her that her dad was already up. "Sammy, time to get up! See you downstairs in five minutes for breakfast." Sam sat up and yawned. Unna stretched next to Sam, stood up over the girl's face, and gave her a lick.

"Alright, alright," Sam said giggling, "I'm up!" She pushed Unna away gently and sat up in bed. She rummaged through her trunk until she pulled out a short, white sundress and a pair of brown leather flip-flops. As she slipped into the dress and shoes, she checked her appearance in the mirror. She quickly ran a brush through her hair and applied some mascara before leaving Unna a bowl of dog food and a fresh dish of water. She scratched her dog behind her ears before heading downstairs to meet her parents. Sam sat down at a table with her parents and began nibbling absently on a piece of toast while her mother and father looked over the Hogwarts book list. Much to her chagrin, most of the same group from the night before was occupying the large table, including the red-haired boy. A plump woman, also with red hair, was bustling around the group talking about needing to start shopping for supplies early as Diagon Alley would be full of other Hogwarts students soon. Sam secretly hoped she wouldn't run into any of them while shopping with her parents. Sam was pulled away from her eavesdropping by her mother. "Are you ready to go, Samantha?" her mother asked as she left a Galleon on the table. Samantha's parents had always been very generous tippers. Sam nodded and rose from the table, following her parents through the door of the Leaky Cauldron.

"Er – how exactly do we get _into_ Diagon Alley?" Sam asked.

"Hmm . . . the bartender told me last night, but I seem to have forgotten. I'll just go back in and ask," Mr. Nimbus said as he headed towards the door. Just as he reached the door, however, the large group of red heads emerged behind the plump woman, along with a boy with black hair and a girl with bushy brown hair. "Ah!" Mr. Nimbus thundered at their appearance. "Sorry to bother you all, but - "

"Oh, you're American!" the plump woman interjected genially "You probably need help getting through to Diagon Alley." She began to tap the bricks on the wall, causing it to open large enough for all of them to get through. As they all poured into Diagon Alley, Mr. Nimbus thanked the woman.

"I'm Isaac Nimbus," Samantha heard her father say. "This is my wife Anna, and my daughter Sammy – er,_ Samantha_," he corrected.

"Molly Weasley," the woman returned warmly as she introduced her children Ron and Ginny, along with a girl who Sam learned was named Hermione Granger and a boy whose name Sam already knew, Harry Potter. "And these two," Mrs. Weasley said, indicating the tall twin boys, "are Fred and George." The red-haired boy from last night, whose name was evidently Fred, quickly found Sam and flashed her a sneaky smile. Sam felt her cheeks begin to go pink.

"Do you own the Nimbus Racing Broom Company?" the boy named Ron blurted at Sam's father. He laughed good-naturedly and replied in the affirmative. "Wow," he said, looking impressed.

"Thank you for your help, Molly," Isaac said, shaking her hand.

"Yes, thank you very much," Anna echoed in her soft voice.

Sam, who hadn't spoken at all during this exchange, suddenly felt words awkwardly tumbling from her lips. "I guess I'll see you guys at Hogwarts?" She blushed a deeper shade of pink as Fred smiled at her.

"Hoping to, _Sammy_," he said in a deep, mocking voice. Samantha shot a quick glare at Fred and decided that she didn't like him very much at all, especially because, the first time they spoke, he made her feel as though she couldn't form a coherent sentence. Mrs. Weasley bustled away with her brood in the direction of a large white building and Samantha and her family went the opposite direction towards the bookstore. As far as Sam was concerned, she couldn't wait to get as far away as possible from Fred Weasley in case she decided to say anything else embarrassing.

As Sam perused the books in Flourish and Blotts, she knew exactly what Adri would be saying about Fred. _"Oh, Sam, you think he's _handsomeeeee_. That's _obviously _why you got so embarrassed!"_ Thinking about Adri's reaction to Fred cheered Sam up a bit and she continued to examine the books in front of her. Samantha loved to read and devoured books hungrily. She jumped as she heard her father clear her throat behind her. "Sammy, aren't you supposed to be looking for your school books?" Sam smiled at her father sheepishly.

"Sorry Dad, got distracted," she admitted.

"No problem kiddo, I knew you would so I already grabbed what you'd need. Let's go pay for these and find your mom," her father lead the way to the front of the store to pay for the books before adding, "I think she's picking up an owl for you so you can keep in touch with us during the year." Sam's heart leapt at the idea of having her own owl. Sam adored animals of any kind. Along with her dog, Unna, she owned two horses, Oliver and Remy and her old pony Marbles. She never, however, had ever had an owl of her own. Sam smiled at the thought of her pets, wondering what they were up to now. She imagined cantankerous old Marbles eating his way through the entire barn while Remy and Oliver tore through the large paddock they called home. Lost in her thoughts about her pets, Sam hardly noticed when she ran into someone in the middle of the store, knocking their books right out of their hands. Sam apologized profusely as she bent to pick up the fallen books. As she straightened herself up, she was face to face yet again with Fred Weasley. "Fancy meeting you here," he said with a smile as he tucked _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 6 _under his arm.

"I'm really sorry, I was just in a bit of a rush and I didn't see where I was going - " Sam was talking very quickly as she felt her cheeks begin to flush yet again. She was infuriated that a perfect stranger could have this effect on her speaking abilities.

"It's fine," Fred said easily, apparently taking great delight in Sam's embarrassment. "Just have your dad send me a Firebolt and we'll be even." He flashed her a cheeky grin before turning to rejoin his twin brother. Sam sighed, annoyed, as she walked towards the front of the store where her father was waiting.

"What was that all about?" her father asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Nothing," Sam replied with another annoyed sigh. "Where's mom?"

"She hasn't come back from buying your owl yet, so I thought we'd meet her there." Sam's excitement at receiving her own owl returned, and she followed her father out of the bookstore and into a dark shop called Eelyops Owl Emporium. Sam looked around excitedly, taking in the beautiful Snowy owls asleep on their perches, the strange-looking Barn owls who were hooting quietly, and the tiny Screech owls who were observing the store through their large eyes. High up in a lonely cage above the counter, however, Sam saw a single owl all by itself that looked nothing like the others. The owl was large and white, with dark rings around its large, brown eyes. Its beautiful white feathers were streaked through vertically with brown, and brown rings encircled its neck and head, making it look as though it were wearing a striped cowl. The owl looked nervous and was turning its head side to side at every little noise. Sam saw her mother at the counter trying to decide between a small brown screech owl or a very large, very haughty looking barn owl. The shopkeeper, an old, irritable looking man, was standing behind the counter waiting for Mrs. Nimbus to make up her mind.

"What do you think, dear?" she asked, noticing her husband walk through the door.

"Well, which one is better for long journeys?" Mr. Nimbus addressed the question toward the shopkeeper, who rolled his eyes as if he had been asked this question at least twenty times by Sam's mother. Before the man could answer, Sam asked eagerly, "How long have you had the Barred owl?"

"Barred owl?" the man snapped back at her, "I think you mean _Barn_ owls, and we've had them since - "

"No," Sam interrupted, "the _Barred _owl. The one above the counter."

"Oh, he flew in a few weeks ago. Must've been blown off course, poor thing. I took him in, waitin' to see if anyone would claim him but he's been here ever since," he replied, his demeanor softening a great deal as his focus shifted away from his needy customer and onto his owls.

"Is he for sale?" Sam asked, her eyes bright.

"Hmm, not sure. I've grown rather fond of the little fellow, but . . . you swear to it that he'll have a good home with you?" he asked, extremely serious.

"I swear," Sam replied, her tone just as earnestly serious as the shopkeepers.

"Then he's yours for four Galleons." Sam paid the man out of her own pocket and happily took the cage as the man handed it to her. Sam and her new owl, along with her parents who were weighted down by the day's shopping, headed back to their room at the Leaky Cauldron. Sam had decided to return on her own after lunch to purchase her uniform so that her parents could stay behind and pack for their trip home.

After a quick lunch, Sam headed back into Diagon Alley alone to purchase her Hogwarts uniform. As she walked into Madam Malkin's and noticed that all of the Hogwarts robes were plain black, her heart sank a bit. Sixth and seventh years at the Salem Institute were allowed to wear whatever color robes they pleased, and Samantha had been looking forward to purchasing shocking pink robes along with her three best friends. Resigning herself to the fact that she would indeed have to wear the boring black Hogwarts robes, Sam ventured further into the store to get measured.

After an uneventful purchase, Sam walked back out into Diagon Alley and began heading back for the Leaky Cauldron. As she walked past Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour, she heard someone let out a low whistle. Sam turned abruptly, annoyed, expecting to see Fred Weasley and his twin brother, but instead saw a tall, dark haired boy sitting at a table, accompanied by a few friends. "I haven't seen _you_ around before," the boy noted, sounding intrigued. "Do you go to Hogwarts?"

"I'm starting tomorrow," Sam replied.

"Ohhh, you're _American_," the boy said, sounding even more intrigued. His friends shot each other a look that was hard to read. "I'm Sebastian Rone," he said, introducing himself. "And your name is?"

"Samantha Nimbus," she replied, feeling more and more uncomfortable. She didn't like the penetrating stare he was fixing her with.

"Well Samantha," he said casually, his eyes traveling up and down her body, making her feel utterly exposed, "would you like to join my friends and I? We were just discussing the finer points of Quidditch." Sam figured he had either noticed her last name or was trying to rope her into a discussion of something neutral that was at the same time something that most people would be eager to discuss.

"I really need to get back to my family," she said, a bit nervously.

"Alright," the boy said, still keeping the casual tone to his voice. "Hope to see you around school," he added as Sam turned to leave.

As Sam flopped into her bed, her new owl snoozing happily on her nightstand and Unna stretched out on the floor, she couldn't help but feel a bit excited about going to Hogwarts. Sure, she would miss her friends back home and her parents, but Hogwarts was supposed to be one of the best schools in the world. She turned on her side to admire her new owl, his head tucked snugly beneath his wing. "You need a name," she murmured to him. Sam's eyes fell on a T-shirt lying next to the night stand with the Salem Institute crest emblazoned across the front. "Salem it is then," she said, smiling. The owl blearily opened an eye and hooted softly. Unna leapt onto the bed, not keen on being ignored, and curled up next to Sam. She scratched Unna behind her ears absentmindedly as she thought about what the school year would be like.


	2. Hogwarts

**Chapter 2**

**Hogwarts**

Sam awoke with a jolt as the sunlight streamed in through the window onto her bed. Her father was knocking on her door loudly. "Ready to go Sam? We're late!" Sam hopped out of bed and quickly grabbed the clothes she had laid out the night before. She slipped into her well worn blue jeans and pink hoodie and was about to slide her large feet into her moccasins when her father came bounding into her room. "Time to go!" He practically bellowed at her as he jauntily picked up her trunk and her owl. Salem, not too happy at being woken up, squawked loudly and began to flap his wings in annoyance. Sam grabbed her old leather back pack off of the floor and followed her dad out of the room, Unna at her heels. "How exactly are we supposed to get to Hogwarts?" Sam asked warily, half expecting to have to travel by broom.

"Oh, you go by train. We've got a car to take us to King's Cross Station and you'll go from there." Sam was utterly relieved that her travel to Hogwarts would not involve her feet leaving the ground. Once her and her father stepped outside of the Leaky Cauldron, Sam's mother was waiting by a large car with a dog crate.

"It's the only way they'll let Unna on the train," she explained as Sam fixed her with a disgusted look.

"But Unna hates crates," Sam responded, protectively holding her dog's collar.

"It's either this or she doesn't go with you," her mother said firmly, taking the dog by her collar and coaxing her into the crate. Unna whined in protest, looking up at Sam with doleful eyes. Sam looked at her pet apologetically and helped her mother load her into the back seat of the car. Sam settled in next to the crate with her mother opposite while her father took the front seat and talked boisterously with the driver who seemed intent upon getting the odd family out of his car. As Sam watched muggle London whiz past her car window, she began to feel increasingly nervous about her upcoming year at Hogwarts. What if she didn't make any friends? Sam wasn't exactly the most outgoing girl, and she was lucky enough to have Adri as a friend to bridge the awkward introduction gap when they met new people. Sam had plenty of friends at Salem because of Adri, but what would she do now that she was on her own? As her anxiety increased and the distance to the train station decreased, Sam was wishing more and more that she was back home. As Sam's dread reached it's boiling point, the car pulled up in front of King's Cross. Her stomach in knots, Sam got out of the car and began piling her belongings onto a large cart. Her father tipped the driver and asked him to wait until they returned. Sam's father pushed the trolley through the crowded train station and found his way between platforms nine and ten. "Your ticket says 9 ¾," he said curiously. "I wonder how we get to the platform."

"Samantha, right?" a deep voice queried from behind the Nimbuses. Sam turned to see Sebastian Rone standing behind them, his parents somewhat distanced from him. Sam nodded, afraid that if she opened her mouth she would be sick with anxiety. "You're new," he stated, as if Sam wasn't painfully aware of this fact. Without waiting for a response, he added, "Just follow me." Sam pushed her cart after him, watching him walk straight through the wall dividing platforms nine and ten. Sam followed cautiously, her parents in tow, and emerged in front of the deep red Hogwarts Express. "Thanks," she muttered.

"No problem. Once you get on board, you should come sit with my friends and I. I'm sure they'd love a more formal introduction than the one they received yesterday." He smiled at her smoothly, fixing her with his penetrating stare.

"Uh, sure . . ." Sam replied weakly. She turned away from the boy quickly and rejoined her parents who were making sure all of her belongings made it onto the train. As the last of Sam's baggage had been thrown onto the train, Sam's father and mother began their goodbyes.

"Be safe," her mother said, tears forming in her large blue eyes, "and write us all the time."

Her dad grabbed her in a tight bear hug. "We love you kiddo. If you need anything, just let us know."

"Have fun," her mother added, kissing her daughter on the cheek. "And make lots of new friends." Sam, who wasn't exactly the best at goodbyes, felt a lump forming in her throat. She hugged her parents wordlessly and boarded the train. Sam found an empty compartment and settled in, wiping a few tears away from her eyes. She peaked out of the window just in time to see her parents apparate from the platform. She sighed as she sat back against her seat and closed her eyes. Just as soon as she began to nod off, the door of the compartment slid open noisily and three girls bounded in. "Oh," one of them exclaimed upon noticing Sam, "we didn't know anybody else was sitting here. Mind if we join?"

"Go ahead," Sam said with a small smile, "I'm Samantha Nimbus."

"I'm Angelina Johnson," the girl replied, "and this is Katie and Alicia. Did you say your last name was _Nimbus?"_ she asked in awe.

"Yep," Sam replied as the three girls plopped down onto the seats.

"As in, racing broom Nimbus?" Katie asked, even more impressed than Angelina.

"One in the same," Sam answered.

"Woah, that's incredible," Alicia piped up. "We're all Quidditch players. Play for the Gryffindor house team, but I bet your loads better than any of us." Sam went pink at the suggestion that she was any good at flying.

"Ohh, you'd lose that bet," she muttered under her breath.

"Are you new?" Angelina queried. "I haven't seen you around Hogwarts."

"Yeah, this is my first year. I went to Salem up until my parents decided to switch me."

"So what year are you?" Katie asked.

"Sixth."

"And do you know what house you're going to be in?"

"Not a clue," Sam replied, somewhat nervously. She hadn't considered too much which house she would be a part of, but now she was worried. Much to Sam's relief, however, the conversation continued easily for a few hours until the compartment door slid open yet again. Sam groaned audibly as Fred Weasley, and his twin, George, strolled into the compartment. "Hello Angelina," George said flirtatiously as he slid in next to her. Angelina rolled her eyes good-naturedly and batted George on the arm. Fred caught Sam's eye and sat down across from her.

"How's it going, Sammy?" he said mockingly.

"Fine," she replied shortly.

"You two know each other?" Katie asked interestedly.

"Oh, we've met once or twice," Fred said suggestively.

"We're acquaintances," Sam clarified quickly, not wanting the girls to infer anything from Fred's racy tone. Katie raised an eyebrow at the pair of them and turned to converse with Angelina, Alicia, and George.

"What's the matter Nimbus, don't you like me?" Fred asked, his eyes glinting mischievously.

"It's not that," Sam replied cooly, "I just get the impression that you're a bit of an asshole." Fred chuckled softly.

"You wouldn't exactly be wrong. I can be a bit of an asshole," he said, his dark brown eyes fixed on Sam's. He lowered his voice as he continued "Especially when I'm going after something I want. I tend to get a bit," he thought for a moment, picking his words carefully, "cocky? Possessive? Take your pick." Sam was taken aback at Fred's forward nature, and her shock must have showed on her face. "Calm down, Nimbus, I'm only joking." Angelina, having heard the last part of their exchange, reassured Sam.

"You can't take anything these two say seriously. The world is a joke to Fred and George," she said with a smile. Sam smiled weakly in return. Fred's comment had put her on edge, making her feel like her seat was electrified. For the rest of the time the two boys were in their compartment, Sam hardly spoke. She was relieved when Angelina told them to leave so the girls could change into their uniforms. "Isn't George great?" Angelina said with a sigh as soon as they were alone.

"Angelina fancies him," Alicia said with a giggle.

"Well you fancy Fred, so you're one to talk," Angelina shot back. Alicia blushed. "Do you have a boyfriend?" Angelina asked, turning the conversation back to Sam.

"Not currently. I guess I can be kind of picky. Plus it's hard when you go to an all-girl's boarding school."

"Oh, I couldn't _imagine_," said Katie dramatically. Sam smiled as she was reminded of her best friend back at home. As soon as the girls were changed into their Hogwarts uniforms, the train screeched to a halt. Sam followed Angelina, Katie, and Alicia out of the train and into a horseless carriage. The four continued to chat absentmindedly as the carriages were pulled towards Hogwarts castle. As Sam stepped out of the carriage and began to follow her new friends, she was stopped by a large man with a long, wild beard. "Hello, Hagrid," Katie said, greeting the man jovially.

"Hello," he replied with a smile, "Samantha Nimbus, right? We need to get you sorted before the new students arrive. Follow me." Sam followed the man into the enormous entrance hall of Hogwarts castle where she was met by a severe-looking woman. "Here's the new sixth year, Professor McGonagall."

"Thank you Hagrid," the woman said, her tone as sharp as her appearance. Sam noticed she was carrying an old, tattered hat in one hand. "Well, let's get to it." Professor McGonagall plopped the hat onto Samantha's head, and before she even knew what was happening, the hat suddenly spoke out loud and shouted, "Gryffindor!"

"Well, that was simple enough," Professor McGonagall said. "Now you can join the rest of the Gryffindors for the start of term feast and you won't have to worry about being sorted in front of the other students." Professor McGonagall lead Sam into the Great Hall where the older students were already seated at their house tables. Sam found a seat between Angelina and Katie who were ecstatic to have her as a Gryffindor, and Alicia assured Sam that it was indeed the best house at Hogwarts. Sam felt overwhelmingly happy and relieved to have made new friends, and enjoyed the start of term feast with the other Gryffindors. Every so often, she would catch Fred staring at her and, much to her surprise, he didn't act like that's what he hadn't been doing. This unsettled Sam, but she chose to ignore him as she shoveled food into her mouth and gabbed happily with the other Gryffindors. Near the end of the feast, the headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, made an announcement about the Triwizard Tournament being held at Hogwarts. The Great Hall buzzed excitedly, but Samantha, being an American witch, had never heard of the tournament. She asked Katie about it as they walked to their dormitory. As Katie was explaining the dangerous nature of the challenges, Fred Weasley popped up behind the girls. "So Nimbus, what d'you think? Do you want to compete?"

"You have to be 17," she replied simply, staring at Fred as if this were the stupidest question ever asked. He shrugged casually.

"Age restrictions haven't really ever stopped me from doing anything before, so I figure I've got a pretty good shot." He winked cheekily at her. Sam sighed and quickened her pace to catch up to Angelina and Alicia.

"I don't understand his appeal," she said as the girls entered the dormitory. Alicia went quiet as soon as Sam brought up Fred. "I mean, he's arrogant. And not the attractive kind of arrogant either." Sam continued to complain as they climbed the stairs to the girls' rooms. As soon as Angelina opened the door, Unna came bounding up to Sam, jumping at her and licking her face.

"Ohhh, is this your dog?" Alicia cooed, stroking Unna's white fur.

"Yep, this is Unna," Sam replied as she pushed the dog off of her. Sam pointed Unna to the bed and the dog curled up happily at the foot, waiting for her. Sam flopped down on her bed and yawned deeply. "I'm so not ready for tomorrow," she said to Angelina, who was laying in the bed next to Sam's.

"You will be, don't worry. Katie and Alicia and I will watch out for you. Just get some sleep. The first day is always crazy." Sam smiled at Angelina and felt her eyelids grow heavy. She fell asleep quickly, and found herself thrust into a strange dream. She was sitting in the Gryffindor common room in the middle of the night, but what she was doing there she couldn't figure. Suddenly, a tall figure emerged at the top of the stairs to the boy's dormitory and began moving towards her. She looked up as he drew closer and was looking into the deep brown eyes of Fred Weasley. "I've been waiting for you, Samantha." His deep voice echoed in the world of her dream, sounding enticing, appealing. He made a sudden move toward her, and Sam sat bolt upright in bed. The early morning sunlight was just beginning to stream in through the dormitory windows. She shook her head, feeling groggy, and pulled herself out of bed. Sam walked down to the common room and settled herself in one of the squashy arm chairs in front of the fire, waiting for her day to begin.

After what felt like hours, Alicia, Katie, and Angelina emerged at the top of the stairs to the girl's dormitory. "Wow, you must've been up early," Angelina observed with a yawn.

"Yeah I got woken up by a weird dream . . . a nightmare really," Sam replied. She glanced over towards the boys dormitory where the sixth years were emerging, preparing to head to breakfast and their first class, potions with the Slytherins. Fred and George Weasley walked out together with their friend Lee Jordan at their side, all looking rather tired. Fred caught Sam's eye and smiled at her. Sam scoffed and turned to Angelina. "Isn't it time for breakfast?" Angelina raised an eyebrow at the hint of annoyance in Sam's voice.

"Uh, yeah, sure. Let's go." Angelina lead the way out of the Gryffindor common room. "So Fred really gets under your skin, does he?" Sam blushed indignantly.

"No . . . I mean, yes. It's just . . ."

"You really need to let it go or people are going to think you're a snob," Katie said with a smile.

"Ugh, I'm _not_ a snob," Sam replied defensively. "He just makes me feel . . . weird when he looks at me." Alicia let out a small cough, and Katie obviously took this as a hint to change the conversation.

"So, Sam, are you going to try out for the house Quidditch team?"

"Oh . . . no, I don't think -"

"Oh, you'd be brilliant!" Alicia exclaimed, her enthusiasm returning as soon as Quidditch was mentioned. Sam smiled awkwardly at the suggestion and let Alicia continue. "Katie, Angelina, and I are all chasers, and Angelina is the captain. I bet if you tried out you'd fit in phenomenally." Sam was beginning to feel more and more uneasy as the conversation dissolved into a full-on discussion about Quidditch. She understood the fundamentals well enough, even if she wasn't able to apply them herself, but even the mention of flying made Sam uneasy. The group finally reached the Great Hall and took their seats at the Gryffindor table just as the owls were bringing in the morning mail. Sam was pleasantly surprised to see Adri's jet black owl, Obsidian, flying amongst the myriad of owls in the hall next to Sam's barred owl, Salem. Spotting Sam, Obsidian landed gracefully in front of her goblet of pumpkin juice, and Salem, who didn't have anything to deliver, settled on Sam's shoulder. Sam gave Obsidian a friendly scratch and untied the letter from his leg. "You should go get some rest in the owlery," Sam said to the owl. Obsidian hooted softly in response and took off back through the window. Sam unfolded the letter and smiled at Adri's messy scrawl. Even in writing, it was obvious that she talked at a mile a minute.

_ Sam,_

_ I miss you immensely, obviously, but I hope you're having a fabulous time. I know you've only been gone a few days, but I need to hear all about what you've been up to! Tell me about everyone you've met. Met any cute guys yet? The new semester at Salem starts soon. It won't be the same without you! Write back soon._

_ Love,_

_ Adri_

"Wow, mail already? Someone must be missing you," Katie said, looking over Sam's shoulder at Adri's letter.

"Oh, it's just my best friend back home. Nothing too interesting," Sam replied as she dug in her bag for a piece of parchment and a quill and penned her reply.

_Adri,_

_ Everything is going well. Met some really cool new people. You would be disappointed with me as far as the guy situation goes. There do seem to be a couple who are interested, but I barely see one of them and the other one weirds me out, which, on top of his arrogance really kind of takes him out of the dating pool. Hope you have a good year. Write me as soon as you get this._

_ Love,_

_ Sammy_

Sam tied the letter to Salem's leg, offered him a piece of buttered toast, and told him to have a safe journey. The owl took off from Sam's shoulder and left through the window. "Oh no, we're going to be late for potions," Katie groaned. "We better get going. We need to walk all the way to the dungeons." Sam downed the rest of her pumpkin juice and followed the girls out of the Great Hall.

"What's potions like here? Back at Salem, it was one of my favorites. We were just learning how to brew the Draught of Living Death."

"Oh, trust me, potions won't be your favorite class her," Angelina said with a heavy voice. "The potion's master is just awful."

"It can't be that bad," Sam said hopefully. Alicia gave her a dark look that reassured her that, yes, it could be that bad. As Sam stepped into the dark potions' dungeon with her friends, she realized that Angelina and Alicia were right. The dark dungeon was nothing like the cheerful potions room at Salem. The four girls sat down together next to a group of Slytherin boys. As soon as they were seated, the potions' master, Severus Snape came swooping into the dungeon. He quickly assigned partners in his cold, methodical voice. The four girls were split to work with Slytherin partners, Sam being sent to work with someone she'd already met.

"Hello, Samantha," Sebastian greeted in his cool, calm voice.

"Hi Sebastian," Sam replied awkwardly.

"Excited to be working with me?" he asked, offering a lazy smile. Sam smiled in response and began gathering the ingredients for their potion. As the two of them worked together, Sam came to the conclusion that maybe Sebastian wasn't so bad. Sure, he made her feel uncomfortable, but that was just the way Sam was around guys in general. He was a good conversationalist and extremely polite. Plus, whenever Sam would chance a look at Fred, he seemed annoyed that Sam was working with Sebastian, which, in Sam's opinion, was just icing on the cake. Towards the end of the lesson, as Snape instructed everyone to clean up their workspace, Sebastian leaned in close to Sam. "I really enjoyed working with you, Samantha. Maybe I could see you sometime outside of class?" He smiled at her again, his dark eyes glimmering in the dark room.

"Um, sure," Sam replied, feeling her cheeks going pink.

"Great. Next week after potions." Sam felt herself nod, although she wasn't exactly sure what she was agreeing to. That had to be the most vague invitation she'd ever received. As she walked back to join Katie, Alicia, and Angelina, they were all staring at her, wide-eyed.

"What?" Sam queried indignantly.

"Did Sebastian Rone just ask you out?" Angelina asked, the disbelief still painted on her face.

"Yes. So?"

"Well . . . it's just . . . he's a _Slytherin_," Alicia said in hushed tones.

"So _what?"_ Sam snapped back. "He seems like a decent guy, so I said yes. What's the big deal?"

"Oh . . . nothing," Angelina replied, trying to revert her attitude back to normal. "But," she said, leaning in close and whispering in Sam's ear, "I think someone isn't very happy with you." Sam turned to find who Angelina was talking about just in time to see Fred Weasley, a murderous expression clouding his face, slamming the door to the potions dungeon.


	3. Letters

**Chapter 3**

**Letters**

Samantha was sitting with Angelina later that night at a small table in the Gryffindor common room completing their potions homework together. Just as Angelina was asking Sam about the proper order of the ingredients for the Draught of Living Death, Fred Weasley plopped down between them. "Nimbus," he greeted Sam.

"Weasley," she quipped back, not looking up from her textbook.

"I saw you talking to Rone today in potions," he observed darkly.

"So," Sam replied nonchalantly, her eyes still not leaving her book.

"Well, he's a Slytherin isn't he? Look," he said, his tone becoming serious, "I've heard some things about him. He's very charming and he has a way with women, but . . ."

"But what, Fred," Sam said, closing her book and looking exasperated. Angelina arched an eyebrow at Fred who ignored her, barreling on.

"But he's not a nice, charming guy, is all. At least from what I've heard."

"Oh really?" Sam's voice held a trace of amusement.

"Look Nimbus, I know I annoy you for some reason -" Angelina masked a giggle with an obviously fake cough. Fred ignored her and continued " -but I just thought I should give you a head's up in case he doesn't exactly turn out to be the sort who holds the door open for his date, if you know what I mean."

"Thanks for the warning, but I'm a big girl and I can handle myself," Sam replied cooly. Fred sighed in frustration, shook his head, and left the table. "What was _that_ all about?" Sam asked Angelina.

"Dunno. Sebastian does have a bit of a reputation around school, but so does Fred. I've no idea what he was on about." Sam glanced over at Fred curiously. He was talking to his brother George and looked very serious.

"It's funny," Sam said, still watching him, "but it's like he's a completely different person when he drops the whole arrogant jackass facade."

"He's just trying to impress you. It's the only way the Weasley's know how to introduce themselves. It works, I guess. They're the most popular guys in our year." Angelina, obviously wanting to conclude the conversation, returned to her potions book. Sam considered her words for a moment before doing the same. After they had been working silently for a few moments, the entrance to the common room opened and Katie and Alicia came bounding in.

"Angelina!" Katie shouted accusingly at her friend. Angelina looked up, incensed.

"What?" she snapped back

"Alicia and I just heard there isn't going to be any Quidditch this year because of the Triwizard Tournament!" Katie sounded absolutely scandalized at the news.

"Oh shit," Angelina said, placing a hand to her forehead, "I completely forgot to tell everyone. It doesn't matter though. We'll find a way to practice as if there was. A year off would make all of us soft." Katie, still looking furious at the news of no Quidditch, began airing her grievances about the rest of the year. Alicia joined in and railed complaints at Angelina.

"Don't you two have potions homework you need to be doing?" Angelina asked, a tinge of annoyance entering her voice as she rewrote a sentence about asphodel for the fifth time. Katie rolled her eyes and sat down next to Sam, retrieving her textbook from her bag.

After thirty minutes and yet another unsuccessful attempt at finishing her assignment, Angelina threw her quill onto the table and declared she was heading down to dinner. Sam, suddenly feeling hungry at the mention of food, decided she'd go with her, Katie and Alicia following behind. "Honestly," Angelina complained as they walked to the Great Hall, "who assigns homework on the first day of classes? I can't stand Snape." The girls sat down at Gryffindor table together and filled their plates while chatting absentmindedly.

"So Alicia," Katie began through a mouthful of mashed potatoes, "are you going to ask Fred to Hogsmeade this weekend?"

"Why would I?" Alicia asked indignantly, her face going bright red.

"Come off it, Alicia. We all know you're mad for him," Angelina replied a bit snappishly, her annoyance at her homework seeping into their conversation.

"I . . . I don't know if I should," Alicia muttered, sounding a bit pained at the thought of having to ask someone out.

"If you like him, you should go after him before someone else snatches him up," Katie said matter-of-factly, "Because believe me, someone else _will_ snatch him up, what with that sense of humor and not to mention that _body_." Sam and Angelina fixed Katie with a look of complete shock. "What? Don't blame me for noticing when someone's attractive." Katie began stabbing at her peas irritably, muttering about being the only girl at Hogwarts with a sex drive. Angelina snorted into her pumpkin juice as Sam and Alicia dissolved into laughter. As the four girls finished their dinner and were walking out of the Great Hall, still giggling like crazy, Sam ran straight into Sebastian, pushing her off balance and almost sending her flat on her back. Sebastian grabbed her shoulders to steady her and smiled down at her easily.

"Best watch where you're going next time Samantha," he said smoothly.

"Sorry," Sam replied a bit awkwardly, her cheeks tinged pink.

"It's fine. Excited for our date next week?"

"Oh, yes," Sam answered, more awkward still.

"Good. Well, I better go find my friends. I've kept them waiting while I was in the library. See you around." He smiled at her again and walked towards the Slytherin table where a group of sixth and seventh years were waiting for him. As the four girls watched him leave, Katie wiggled her eyebrows at Sam suggestively.

"I'll _bet_ he'll see you around," she said.

"Oh shut up," Sam replied playfully, blushing. The four girls headed up to the common room, giggling like first years as they talked about Sam's upcoming date with Sebastian.

The next morning, Sam woke up early and changed into her uniform. She attempted to wake up Unna, who was napping under the window, but she simply rolled over and continued to snore happily. Sam scratched her belly and walked downstairs and into the common room which was already full of sleepy Gryffindors. As she sat down on one of the armchairs in front of the fire to wait for Alicia, Katie, and Angelina, she saw Fred and George sitting by the stairs of the boys dormitory, talking in suspiciously low voices to a group of first years. Sam was reminded of Katie's gushing over his appearance the night before and she couldn't help but begrudgingly admit that she had a bit of a point. Fred's messy red hair fell just so over his dark, intelligent eyes and his lips always seemed to be upturned in a half-smirk. His arms were strong and toned from his years of playing Quidditch, and Sam found herself absentmindedly wondering what the rest of him looked like. With a firm shake of her head, she pulled herself out of her reverie. _It's Fred_ she reminded herself. _Arrogant, obnoxious Fred_. She decided to walk down to breakfast by herself in order to evade her almost perverse thoughts about a boy she could barely stand.

As Sam sat alone at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, casually sipping her pumpkin juice, her huge barred owl Salem swooped down to join her, a letter tied around his leg. Sam opened it and read Adri's reply to her last letter.

_Sammy,_

_ Tell me all about these guys you mentioned! Details! Summer is dragging on here. I almost can't wait for school to start next week. Hope you're having fun._

_ Love,_

_ Adri_

Sam pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill and wrote back, telling Adri all about how annoying Fred Weasley was and how she hardly tolerated him, but also mentioning her strange dream starring said annoying boy. Sam was hoping her friend could provide some useful insight into why her subconscious would betray her in such a grievous manner. She also wrote to her about Sebastian and her upcoming date, imagining how excited her friend would be to hear about it. "You need some rest, Salem," Sam told her owl after she had signed off on the letter. Salem hooted tiredly in response. "I'll send this to Adri later. You go relax." Sam offered him a piece of sausage, which Salem took gratefully before taking off through the window. As Sam began to pick at her scrambled eggs indifferently, Angelina and Alicia walked into the Great Hall and joined her. "Where's Katie?" Sam asked, noting her absence.

"Sick," Alicia answered.

"Supposedly," added Angelina. "I heard her up all night in the common room talking and giggling with Lee Jordan so I think it's more of a case of not getting enough sleep." Sam joined Angelina in a laugh at Katie's antics as Alicia buttered a piece of toast.

"We better run. We've got transfiguration in ten." Angelina nodded and also grabbed some toast as Sam picked up her bag and followed her friends out of the Great Hall, forgetting her neatly folded letter next to her plate.

After transfiguration (during which Angelina had marveled at Sam's ability to change her chair into a Niffler and back seamlessly), Sam and Alicia headed to lunch while Angelina, who had eventually been joined by Katie, went to their next class. As soon as they entered the Great Hall, Alicia's face lit up. When Sam noticed where she was looking, she let out an audible groan. Fred Weasley was sitting by himself reading from his Charms textbook. "Oh Sam, I know you're not exactly fond of Fred -"

"It's fine," Sam interrupted, forcing a smile at her friend, "we can sit with him." Alicia grinned in return as the two of them made their way to the table to take their seats with Fred.

"Oh, Nimbus, you've decided to lower your standards and actually be seen with me." Fred grinned at her mischievously as she sat across from him.

"Yep, but don't get used to it. Lowering my standards this much is such a shock to my system that if I do it too often, I'll be petrified." Fred chuckled softly and fixed his eyes on hers. This unsettled Sam slightly. There was something beneath his playful mirth that Sam couldn't identify, and it made her nervous.

"So Fred," Alicia piped up, not wanting to be left out, "have you heard that there's no Quidditch this year?"

"Yeah," he answered, his eyes not moving from Sam.

"But Angelina said we're still having practices, so at least that's something," Alicia added, trying to pull his attention to her.

"That's good," Fred added blandly. "Are you going to join the team, Nimbus?"

"Nope," Sam answered shortly, trying to sound confident and avoid further prying at the same time. "So Fred, where's George?"

"Dunno. He took off with Lee sometime after transfiguration. Told me he'd meet me here though."

"Well that's good because we were just leaving," Alicia said, sounding irritated. "C'mon Sam." Sam stood to follow Alicia out, but Fred caught her arm first.

"Be seeing you soon, Sammy," he said quietly, smirking at her. Sam rolled her eyes and pulled away, following Alicia to their next class.

After their last class, Katie and Sam were working on their charms homework while Alicia and Angelina were finishing out their potions essay from the night before. As Sam added the last sentence to her essay, she stood up and stretched. "Well, I'm ready for dinner."

"Why does it seem like all we do is eat?" Katie asked with a yawn as she stood to join Sam. Alicia and Angelina put the last touches on their essays, packed them in their bags, and the four of them walked down to the Great Hall. As the group was halfway to the hall, someone seized her by the elbow. Sam looked up to see Fred Weasley holding on to her arm.

"Mind if I steal her for a moment?" he asked Katie. She shrugged and continued on with Angelina and Alicia. Fred smiled a bit darkly at Sam and pulled her behind a statue of a goblin. Within the confined space, Fred's large frame seemed even more intimidating. There was barely an inch between the two of them.

"Missing something, Nimbus?" Fred asked, his voice coy and seductive.

"N – no," Sam stammered. She could feel the heat between them, smell Fred's musky scent.

"You sure?" he asked, his voice low so that none of the passing students would notice them. Sam thought for a moment and suddenly remembered her letter to Adri from that morning.

"Give it to me, Fred," she said, her voice sharp.

"What? Here? In front of the whole school? I didn't peg you for the type that liked an audience, but if that's what gets you going -"

"You know what I mean," she snapped, her voice clearly indicating that she was not in the mood for his games.

"Fine," he replied, sounding resigned. He pulled the letter out of the pocket of his trousers and held it out of her reach. Sam didn't realize before just how tall Fred was. "Come get it, Sammy." Sam folded her arms and glared at him. A letter was not worth her dignity and she was certainly not about to jump for it. Fred sighed and smiled down at her, handing her the letter. Sam turned on her heel to go, but was caught again by Fred, his hand firm around her arm. He pulled her close to him, so that her back was to his chest. He leaned down into her, his lips against her ear, and whispered, "The next time you have a dream about a liaison between the two of us in the middle of the night, just let me know. I'd be more than happy to keep you company." His warm breath made the hair on the back of Sam's neck stand on end and, even though she detected his mocking tone, his words were also laced with lust. Sam pulled away from Fred quickly and walked back towards Gryffindor common room, her heart pounding and her head spinning.

As soon as Sam reached her room, she unfolded her letter to Adri and quickly scrawled a postscript.

_I think this Fred guy might seriously want to fuck me. Either that or he just likes messing with my head. Write back ASAP!_

Sam handed the letter to Salem who took it in his beak, ruffled his feathers, stretched his wings, and took off through the open dormitory window. Sam laid back on her bed with a heavy sigh. She was utterly mortified that someone had read her letter, and was furious at the fact that it was Fred. _How can he be such an arrogant dick?_ She thought angrily. She pulled her covers over her head and closed her eyes, letting out a muffled scream into her pillow. As she reemerged from her blankets, Unna was looking at her curiously. "What?" she snapped at the dog. Unna stood up, stretched, and walked out of the dormitory and down to the common room. "Great, now my dog hates me. Thanks a lot, Fred."

"Who in the _hell_ are you talking to?" Sam sat bolt upright and saw Angelina standing in the doorway of their room.

"Oh . . . don't worry about it," Sam replied, her cheeks going pink. "Aren't you supposed to be at dinner?"

"Well, when Fred pulled you aside to talk to you and you didn't show up afterwords I was wondering where you went, so I came to find you. What did he want to talk about anyway?" Sam sighed as she launched into an explanation, first about the dream and then about the letter, and finally about the exchange behind the statue. She did, however, omit Fred's suggestion that Sam come find him if she had another dream about him. Angelina let out a low whistle. "You're really getting to him."

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, frustrated.

"Well, usually, people kind of succumb to the Weasley twins' charm about, ohhh, a day in. You've lasted way longer than that, and it's starting to get to Fred." Angelina said this as simply as if she were explaining the rules of Exploding Snap. Sam looked at her dumbfounded.

"So, basically what you're saying, is that until I giggle complacently at Fred's jokes and act like he's God's gift to women like every other girl at this school, he's going to torture me?"

"Basically," Angelina replied with a shrug. Sam flopped back on her bed with an expasperated groan.

"Can't you just knock him off of his broom or something when you guys have Quidditch practice?"

"I'll consider it. And speaking of Quidditch practice, our first one is on Friday. You should come watch." Sam agreed to go watch the practice after making Angelina promise that she wouldn't have to participate. As Angelina began to ask why Sam was so adamant about not leaving the ground, Sam suddenly complained about being tired, drew the curtains around her bed, and pretended to fall asleep.

The rest of the week flew past in a blur of classes and homework. As Friday afternoon rolled around and most of the Gryffindors were hanging around the common room, Katie was goading Alicia to ask Fred to go to Hogsmeade with her.

"Katie, I just don't feel comfortable asking," Alicia stated for the twelfth time.

"You know what? I'll do it for you." Katie stood from their small table and walked with purpose towards Fred and George's perch on one of the large windowsills. Alicia opened her mouth in protest but couldn't seem to formulate a sentence. Katie talked to Fred for a minute and then returned to the group. "He said yes!" she said excitedly.

"What?" Alicia exclaimed, sounding both excited and embarrassed at the idea.

"He said that he'll meet you in the common room tomorrow morning and you two can walk down together and spend the day with each other!" Alicia, Katie, and Angelina squealed excitedly. Sam tried to feel happy for her friend, but felt an odd twinge of jealousy growing in the pit of her stomach.

"That's great," Sam finally forced herself to say, plastering a smile on her face. _No reason to be jealous_, she instructed herself. _Besides, you have a date with Sebastian next week. No reason to be jealous at all_. Sam, feeling sufficiently reassured, chanced a glance at Fred. He smiled at her wickedly before turning back to his brother. Sam willed herself to not let that twinge of jealousy crop up again. _Nope, not jealous. Not at all._

Sam awoke the next morning to bright sunlight streaming in through the windows and directly onto her face. As she grumpily attempted to pull her covers over her head and go back to sleep, she rolled over and saw Alicia standing by her bed in tears. Alarmed at her friend's state of distress, Sam got up out of bed. "What's wrong Alicia?"

"I know it's silly for me to be crying, but . . ."

"What is it?" Sam pressed, growing concerned.

"Just . . . I've been up for hours trying to decide what to wear." She wiped her eyes sheepishly as Sam put an arm around her.

"Don't worry," Sam said, relieved that Alicia was ok. "We'll find something for you." Sam began rummaging through her trunk and pulled out a denim mini skirt and a white, flowy tank top. She handed these to Alicia, along with a pair of pink wedges with a cork bottom. "Try this," she said encouragingly. As Alicia closed the curtains around her bed to change, Sam found herself wishing she hadn't given her such a short skirt. Alicia opened her curtains to show Sam the outfit. "That looks great on you!" Sam exclaimed, and it was true. The miniskirt showed off her long legs and the tank top hugged her athletic shoulders perfectly.

"Thank you so much Sam. Today is really important to me." Alicia was so painfully grateful that it made Sam feel guilty for ever being jealous of her friend.

"Anytime Alicia. You better get going, though. Fred's probably waiting for you." As Alicia thanked Sam one last time and headed down the stairs and into the common room, Sam couldn't help but wonder what a date with Fred would be like. Before Sam could slip too far into considering all of the things that Alicia and Fred would probably do, she decided to distract herself. She picked up one of her flip-flops off the floor and chucked it towards Angelina's bed.

"What was that for?" Angelina asked angrily.

"Let's go to Hogsmeade," Sam suggested.

"Fine, but next time a simple tap on the shoulder will do." Angelina sat up and cantankerously muttered at Sam. Sam ignored her as she dug through her trunk yet again. She pulled out a very short, simple light pink sundress and her favorite brown sandals. As she slipped into her dress, she pulled her long brown hair out of it's ponytail holder. She quickly swiped on some mascara and lipgloss, highlighting her full lips and deep eyes. "Who are you getting all dolled up for?" Angelina asked as she slipped on a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt.

"I'm not getting _dolled_ _up_," Sam retorted defensively.

"Are too. Is it for _Sebastian_?" Angelina batted her eyes at Sam as she said Sebastian's name. Sam hadn't even really considered this, but as Angelina made the suggestion, she concocted a brilliant and devious plan.

"Maybe," Sam replied, smiling slyly. "Should we get Katie up before we leave?"

"Oh, she left with Lee earlier," Angelina replied as she headed out of the dormitory, Sam following. "Looks like you're my date for today, Nimbus." Angelina linked arms with Sam and the two of them walked out of the dormitory and headed to Hogsmeade.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Hey guys! Thanks for the awesome reviews. Since it took me so long to add chapter two last time, I decided I'd add chapter three fairly quickly. If you enjoy it, please review! Reviews make me feel all excited and tingly and also have the added bonus of making me update more. :)


	4. Fire

**Chapter 4**

**Fire**

As the girls arrived in the village, they were greeted by the crisp September breeze. Sam shivered slightly, almost regretting her clothing decision until she and Angelina walked past a group of seventh year boys who whistled and cat-called loudly. _Mission accomplished, _Sam thought smugly to herself. Sam was enamored with Hogsmeade. After dragging Angelina to look at the Shrieking Shack, and then into Honeydukes to buy bags and bags of candy, Angelina – who had been to Hogsmeade at least thirty times since her third year – complained of being tired, so the girls wandered into the Three Broomsticks for a mug of Butterbeer. They settled into a small table at the back of the pub, Butterbeer in hand, and talked happily for awhile. Sam was listening to Angelina list George Weasley's numerous attributes for the third time that day when she noticed a group of Slytherin boys walk into the pub, Sebastian among them. "Hold that thought," Sam interrupted, cutting off Angelina's glowing appraisal of George's abilities as a beater. Sam stood up from their table and made her way to Sebastian, who was listening disinterestedly to his friends' conversation. "Hello," Sam greeted warmly. Sebastian turned to see who was talking to him, and looked pleasantly surprised to see Sam smiling up at him.

"Hello Samantha. Enjoying Hogsmeade?" he asked, his smooth smile accentuating his handsome face.

"Very much, but my friend and I are pretty lonely," she said, pouting slightly as she pointed to Angelina who was looking at Samantha as if she had grown two heads. "Would you all care to join us?"

"I don't see why not. Nothing wrong with keeping two lovely girls company, right boys?" Sebastian's friends grunted in reply. As they made their way back to the table, Angelina looked somewhat horrified that Sam had invited four Slytherin boys to sit with them.

"Oh relax," Sam hissed to her under her breath. Angelina pursed her lips and crossed her arms stubbornly in response.

"So Samantha, you just couldn't wait for our date on Monday, could you?" He put an arm around her shoulder as Sam smiled coyly.

"What can I say, I enjoy your company. Can you blame me?" Angelina made a gagging noise as she watched the sordid exchange. Sam shot her a sharp look and turned her attention back to Sebastian. "Are you going to try out for the Triwizard Tournament?"

"Oh, I'm not sure. I turn seventeen in a few days, so I suppose I could. I don't know if it'll be enough of a challenge for me," he replied as he absentmindedly toyed with a strand of Samantha's hair. Just then, as if on cue, Fred and Alicia stepped into the pub. Fred's eyes traveled around the room casually and finally settled on the table where Sam and Sebastian were sitting. His eyes narrowed and his face contorted into an angry grimace as he saw Sebastian's arm possessively draped over Sam's shoulder.

"C'mon," he said to Alicia, taking her by the hand and dragging her to the table. He sat down heavily next to Angelina and, Alicia, left without an open seat, had to wedge herself awkwardly between two of Sebastian's friends. "Hullo, Nimbus, Rone," he greeted, nodding curtly at the pair. "Having a good time, are you?"

"Always," Sam replied as she leaned in to Sebastian slightly. "And you?"

"Oh, Alicia and I are having a _spectacular _time, aren't we Alicia?" Fred's question sounded pointed, accusatory. Alicia, who looked as if she would rather be hanging out in the Shrieking Shack than sitting between two Slytherin boys, nodded uncomfortably. "So Rone, had enough of the Slytherin girls so you had to go chasing after the new Gryffindor?"

"Actually, Weasley," Sebastian replied cooly, "Samantha asked me to join her." Fred's face darkened and the tension at the table rose. Sam was suddenly regretting her grand scheme of trying to make Fred jealous.

"Well, just make sure you keep your hands to yourself, Rone. Wouldn't want another incident like last term, now would we?" Sebastian's face dropped, his cool expression replaced by a lethal glare. It was evident that Fred had crossed a line.

"I think you'd better leave, Weasley. Besides, I don't think you can afford to keep your date out much longer." Fred's face went crimson with rage at Sebastian's words. It was obvious that a fight was imminent. Angelina, sensing the oncoming brawl, stood up suddenly and grabbed Samantha by the hand.

"Fred, Alicia, I think it's time for us to go," she said hurriedly. Sam, looking fairly terrified, nodded silently. Angelina grabbed Fred by the collar and hauled him out of his chair, forcing him to follow the three girls. As the four of them exited the pub, Fred roughly took Alicia by the hand and stalked off ahead of Sam and Angelina. "What the hell were you thinking, Samantha?" Angelina shouted once Fred and Alicia were out of earshot.

"I just . . . wanted to make him a bit jealous?" Sam was feeling guiltier and guiltier by the second, and Angelina's chastising expression was simply exacerbating her feeling of wickedness.

"But why? You can't stand him! Who cares if he's jealous of you or not?"

"Look, I just wanted to get him back for what he did the other day. That's all!"

"Oh, good job then. And I bet you didn't even stop to think about how it would make Alicia feel. It's obvious Fred has a thing for you, and you just _had_ to go and point it out in front of her. While she was on a date with him no less!" Sam felt tears beginning to sting the corners of her eyes. She really hadn't thought about how her actions would affect her friend, and that made her feel worst of all.

"I'm sorry," Sam mumbled, wiping her eyes discretely.

"It's fine," Angelina said, her voice softening. "Just . . . next time, try not to be such a huge prat?" Sam smiled at her weakly. "So tell me," Angelina asked as the two continued to walk back to the castle, "why were you _really _trying to make Fred jealous?"

"I told you. It was pure revenge for the whole letter thing. Nothing else." Angelina looked at Sam searchingly, opened her mouth to say something in response, thought better of it, and the pair continued on in silence. As they reached the entrance to the castle, a thought suddenly occurred to Sam. "Do you think Alicia is going to be mad at me?" Angelina shrugged.

"Maybe, maybe not. Guess we'll find out." As the girls walked through the doors, a sense of dread settled in the pit of Sam's stomach. She knew how _she _would feel if someone had behaved so atrociously toward her. The two girls climbed the stairs to Gryffindor tower and entered the common room where a few Gryffindors were lying around lazily, enjoying the end of their Saturday afternoon. Much to Sam's relief, Alicia and Katie were sitting at their usual table and Alicia looked ecstatic. Sam took a seat next to Alicia who was gushing to Katie about her date with Fred.

"And I haven't even told you the best part!" Alicia said, continuing with her recounting of the day's events.

"What?" Katie asked in rapt attention.

"Well," Alicia lowered her voice to a whisper, "when we walked back up to the castle, he told me he had an amazing time and then -"

"And then what?" Katie asked, bursting.

"He kissed me!" Alicia practically squealed. Katie's jaw dropped momentarily before she joined in with Alicia in squealing excitedly. Angelina was grinning from ear to ear and congratulating Alicia. Sam couldn't explain why, but she was suddenly furious and she wanted very much to find Fred Weasley and punch him in the face.

* * *

><p>When Sunday evening rolled around, Sam decided that she wasn't in the mood to hear about Alicia and Fred's date for the hundredth time, so she gathered her books and headed to the library to get a head start on her transfiguration homework. She found an empty table at the very back of the library and threw her bag onto it, irritated. She tugged her transfiguration book out of her bag and opened it to the chapter about animagi. She began making notations in the margin of her book as she read about the seven registered animagi of the 21st century when she began to feel very sleepy. She shook her head forcefully, willing herself to stay awake. Sam made her way through another two sentences before sleep overtook her. She laid her head down on her book and succumbed to her heavy eyelids.<p>

* * *

><p>"Where's Sam?" Fred asked Angelina in the common room, interrupting Angelina's discussion of her strategy for getting permission to practice on the Quidditch pitch that Friday.<p>

"She went to the library about an hour ago. Why?" Angelina looked at Fred suspiciously.

"I was just wondering," he retorted defensively. "I've got something I need to talk to her about." Angelina arched an eyebrow at Fred before he turned to walk out of the common room. He walked down the dark staircase leading out of Gryffindor tower and into the empty library. It was a quarter to midnight and nearly everyone was in bed. Fred glance around the dark room, searching for Samantha. As his eyes adjusted to the dark, he finally saw her hunched over her books at a back table. _Great_, he thought to himself. _You've come all this way and now you've forgotten to make up an excuse for coming to find her. Good job, idiot._ He mentally cursed himself as he quietly made his way towards Sam. He couldn't help but notice how peacefully beautiful she looked when she was asleep. Her dark brown hair cascaded over her gently and the moonlight was playing sweetly on her face. Fred had to fight the temptation to tenderly brush a strand of her hair behind her ear. Her full lips were drawn into a slight pout as she stirred momentarily. Fred caught his breath. He didn't want her to wake up. Not just yet. He admired her for a few more moments, wickedly imagining what she looked like underneath her uniform, before clearing his throat loudly. Sam sat up with a jolt and looked around wildly. Her temporary look of confusion and almost fear both pained him slightly and endeared her to him at the same time. He wanted badly to put his arms around her, but instead fell back onto one of his normal, sarcastic greetings.

"Rise and shine, Nimbus," he barked at her, smirking derisively.

"Oh great, just who I want to see when I get woken up from a pleasant dream," she snapped back at him.

"Oh, was I in this one? Or were you screwing Rone this time?" Sam fixed him with a look that dripped with contempt and Fred immediately regretted pushing the joke too far. "Look," he said, momentarily dropping the attitude, "I really just wanted to come find you to apologize for being such an asshole the other day." Sam looked at him thoughtfully for a moment, and nodded, inviting him to continue. "Rone just . . . he gets to me I guess. And with good reason too."

"You keep saying that," Sam replied, packing her books away as she prepared to leave. "What is it that's so awful about him?"

"It's nothing, alright? I just think he's playing you, that's all." Sam frowned at him as she swung her bag over her shoulder. "Mind if I walk back with you?" he asked.

"Uh, I guess? I don't care," Sam replied dismissively. The pair left the library in silence, an odd tension building between them as they walked back to Gryffindor tower. When they entered the common room, Fred began an awkward goodnight before Sam interrupted him. "Why did you kiss Alicia?" She demanded.

"I – uh – what?" Fred was completely taken aback by Sam's accusatory tone.

"You heard me. Why did you kiss her?" Her voice was even more pointed now as she stared up at him.

"I don't know . . . I kiss a lot of people . . ." Fred was feeling slightly uncomfortable as Sam fixed him with a sharp stare.

"Did you do it because you thought it would make me jealous? Because you were wrong. It didn't work." Fred stared at her open mouth as she rounded on him. "I don't care who you kiss! Especially if you're kissing my friends. Good for you! Why not just kiss every girl in our year while you're at it?" Fred continued to gape at her as the assault continued. "You know, Alicia really likes you, and you have a lot of balls going to Hogsmeade with her and then stalking me in the library the next day. I hope you'll be happy when Alicia finds out you were out looking for me all night! You know, I wish I could say I'm surprised but I'm not. You're an asshole, Fred Weasley, and I can't stand you." As Fred began to formulate his response, Sam beat him to the punch. "Well, if you have nothing to say for yourself . . . goodnight." Sam turned to leave, but Fred caught her by the wrist. He pulled her close to him, his strong arms wrapped around her slender body. Sam gasped as he pulled her against him. He looked into her dark brown eyes curiously for a moment and then, without thinking, without speaking, he pressed his lips to hers. He pulled her up into him as he kissed her forcefully, desperately, powerfully, sliding his tongue into Sam's mouth. She moaned quietly as she kissed him back, her body pressed against his willingly now, her hands in his hair. Fred's hands began to travel from Sam's waist, down her back, lower . . . and that's when Sam broke away from him. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" she asked furiously. She shoved him hard as she turned and ran up the stairs to the girls dormitory, leaving Fred disheveled and confused.

* * *

><p>Sam sat down on her bed, her head spinning and her heart pounding. Her stomach was in knots. <em>Did Fred Weasley just kiss me?<em> Her heart began to beat even faster at the thought. _I kissed him back. I kissed Fred._ She laid down on her bed, light-headed. _No, I didn't kiss him back. That doesn't count. He totally caught me off guard. _Satisfied with her reasoning that, because Fred had initiated the kiss she was no way responsible for her actions, she pulled her covers over her. Her heart was beginning to slow, but she still felt like her head was swimming. Unna, who had gotten up to greet Sam when she walked into the dormitory, leapt onto the bed and settled herself next to Sam. "Why would he kiss me Unna? Why? He knows I can't stand him." Unna yawned in response and closed her eyes. Sam rolled over onto her side and saw Alicia sleeping peacefully next to her. Her disbelief suddenly subsided and was replaced by anger at Fred. He was leading Alicia on while he was sneaking around the school kissing other girls. _Oh you'll pay for this, Fred Weasley,_ she thought vindictively as she closed her eyes and attempted to fall asleep, her mind still reeling.

The next day, Sam was so hellbent on getting revenge on Fred that she completely forgot about her date with Sebastian until Katie reminded her right before potions. "So what are you and Sebastian going to do?" she asked over breakfast, "I mean, it's not like you two can exactly leave the grounds." Sam shrugged as she glanced over at Sebastian who was entertaining his friends at the Slytherin table.

"I'm not sure to be honest, but I guess I'll find out soon enough." Sam gulped down her orange juice and walked with her friends to the potions dungeon. Sam, still recovering from the events of the night before, remained silent as Angelina and Alicia asked Katie about her date with Lee in Hogsmeade. The girls reached the potions dungeon and sat at their usual table and waited for Professor Snape to begin class by sorting them into pairs.

"I hope I don't get paired off with Marcus Flint again," Angelina groaned. "He's a total dolt." Much to their relief, Snape paired the students with members of their own houses. Sam was paired with Fred's twin, George.

"So," George began casually as he chopped their mint sprigs to add to the brewing Volubilis potion, "I heard you had quite a night last night." Sam's hand twitched violently as she was stirring her potion with her wand, causing the half-brewed concoction to spill down the front of her robes. She cursed under her breath as she cleaned herself off.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Sam replied, having regained her composure.

"Bullshit," George replied flatly. Sam ignored him as she tried to recover the spilled potion. "Look," George continued. Sam smiled at the word, noticing how both brothers employed the same tactic to indicate when they were being serious. "Fred feels really bad about it." Sam looked up at him, surprised.

"Why does he feel bad?"

"He felt like he might have – er – been a bit too . . . aggressive," he finished awkwardly. Sam's face went bright pink as she remembered the desperate urgency in Fred's kiss.

"Well I mean . . . it's . . . it's fine. Just . . . tell him it's fine and we don't ever need to talk about it again." Sam, sensing that George would press the issue, raised her hand and pretended that she forgot how long she needed to brew the mint sprigs. As Professor Snape swooped over to their cauldron, George lowered his head and continued to work, dropping the conversation.

* * *

><p>After class had been dismissed, Sam quickly packed her things and walked briskly out of the dungeon to avoid further conversation with George and to wait for Sebastian. After about five minutes, Sebastian emerged, his usual group of friends not hovering around him this time. "Ready?" he asked. Sam replied in the affirmative and the two of them walked up out of the dungeon and out of the castle. It was a crisp, clear autumn day and the sun was shining warmly enough that Sam felt comfortable without her cloak. Sebastian lead her to one of the far shores of the lake. "Since we can't leave Hogwarts, I figured we could have a picnic." He waved his wand and skillfully used a summoning charm to procure a blanket, a jug of pumpkin juice, a plate of sandwiches, and a small basket of cakes and cookies.<p>

"Oh, this is perfect," Sam sighed. She breathed the fresh air deeply as she sat down on the blanket and helped herself to a sandwich. She watched the lake quietly for a few moments, reminded of the many hikes and climbs her and her father undertook.

"What are you thinking about?" Sebastian asked her curiously.

"Nothing really. Sitting out here just reminds me of when my dad and I climbed Mount McKinley last year."

"Oh? What was that like?" Sebastian asked, sounding genuinely interested.

"Invigorating," she said with a fond smile, "and also one of the hardest things I've done in my entire life."

"Really? Didn't you use magic to get to the top?"

"Oh, of course not!" Sam answered, sounding shocked at the suggestion. "Why even climb if you're just going to apparate or fly up there? It defeats the whole purpose." Sebastian's expression showed that he clearly didn't agree with Sam.

"Hmm . . . don't you think it's a bit . . . base to travel like a muggle?"

"Not really," Sam replied casually. "My best friend's father is a muggle, so I've spent a lot of time doing muggle things." Sebastian almost looked disgusted by this.

"I don't think it's right for witches and wizards to be doing things _their_ way," he said contemptuously. Sam looked at him curiously and changed the subject.

"Tell me about yourself. I feel like I hardly know you at all." Sam seemed to have found the magic words, because Sebastian loved talking about himself. He told Sam all about his brother who was an excellent Quidditch player and who hoped to play for Puddlemere United next year, he told her about his very wealthy parents who owned homes all over the world, and he bragged about having top marks in his house. As Sebastian talked on and on about himself, Sam found herself becoming bored and day-dreamy, her mind traveling back to Gryffindor common room where she imagined Fred was sitting with his brother, plotting new ways to make Hogwarts their own personal testing ground for their pranks. Sam was suddenly caught off guard and pulled out of her preoccupation when Sebastian leaned over her, his arms on either side of her.

"Distracted?" he said, his voice holding a seduction Sam had never heard from him. Before Sam had time to respond, his lips were on hers. She couldn't help but notice how different Sebastian's kiss was from Fred's. It was forceful, calculated, demanding. There was no "please" in his kiss as their had been in Fred's. Sebastian pulled away from Sam quickly and looked down at her. "Shall we head back to the castle then?"

"Uh . . . sure." Sam felt like her whole body had been electrified. Her fingers and toes were tingling after Sebastian's unexpected kiss. Sebastian stood and offered a hand to Sam, who was still sitting on the ground, utterly shocked. She took his hand and pulled herself up and the two headed back into Hogwarts together.

"Be seeing you then?" Sebastian asked as Sam turned to walk to her common room.

"Sure," Sam replied dully, her mind fuzzy. Sebastian smiled at her, clearly pleased with the result of their date, and walked the opposite direction to the Slytherin dungeon.

Sam entered the common room, which was nearly empty save for a few sixth and seventh years who had a break in classes before the afternoon. Sitting at their usual table, Katie was reading through her transfiguration notes from the day before. Sam, her head still buzzing, joined her. "How was your date?" Katie asked excitedly, shoving her notes in her bag as Sam sat down.

"It was . . . interesting," Sam replied honestly.

"Just interesting?" Katie asked, sounding a bit disappointing.

"I mean . . . I don't know. He kissed me."

"What? The boy kisses you and all I get is an _interesting_?" Sam choked out a laugh at Katie's enthused reaction to the news.

"It was strange, Katie. I don't know how to explain it. It was like completely polar opposite from kissing F - " Sam caught herself before she let her secret slip. Katie looked at her incredulously.

"Different than kissing _who, _Sam?" She prodded, her face animated.

"No one!" Sam replied, her cheeks going pink.

"You weren't going to say 'no one,' so tell me!" Sam sighed as she pulled out her charms textbook and began reading about the Fidelius charm.

"You know, I have to write an entire essay for Flitwick in about 45 minutes," Sam stated, changing the subject.

"Fine," Katie grumbled, "but if you think I'm going to let this go . . ." And she didn't. Katie pressed her about the mystery kiss as the walked out of Gryffindor common room and, much to Sam's displeasure, outside of the charms classroom where Alicia and Angelina were waiting.

"Who did you kiss?" Angelina asked, almost as excited as Katie.

"Other than Sebastian, she means," Katie piped up.

"_No one_," Samatha repeated in exasperation for the millionth time. Angelina arched an eyebrow as Alicia suppressed a giggle. "I swear, you three are worse than my friends back home." Sam felt a pang of homesickness as she remembered that today was the start of the semester at Salem. She wondered what her friends were up to and if they missed her as much as she missed them. As Katie began to ask again who Sam had been kissing, the door to the charms classroom opened and the girls entered and took their seats.

"I'm onto you, Nimbus," Katie said under her breath as Professor Flitwick flicked his wand to collect their homework. Sam stuck her tongue out at Katie who opened her mouth to say something but was silenced by the start of class.

* * *

><p>After charms, Alicia, Angelina, and Katie had a break before their last class so Sam headed to Ancient Runes alone. As she made her way down the corridor, she stopped as she heard a familiar voice calling her name. "What do you want Fred?" Sam asked as he jogged next to her to catch up.<p>

"Can we talk for a minute?" he asked as he jostled along the busy corridor next to her.

"About what?" Same asked, her voice clipped.

"About . . . you know what about!"

"Nope, don't have a clue. And honestly, I'm running late for class so I don't have time to play guessing games with you." With that, Sam disappeared into a crowd of lost first years and didn't even glance back.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Sam found herself in the common room with Angelina and Katie, attempting to finish their potions essay that was assigned to them that day.<p>

"Honestly, I'm already sick of homework and the term's hardly started," Katie said as she finished her essay and yawned deeply. Angelina hummed in response as she, too, packed away her assignment. "Coming to bed, Sam?" Katie asked as she stretched.

"Can't. I've got to start my translations for runes," Sam replied, her voice heavy with exhaustion.

"Well, good luck," Angelina said as she and Katie headed up to join Alicia in the dormitory. Sam worked in silence by herself, the common room emptying slowly as it got later and later. As the fire died down and cast a cozy, amber glow over the room, Sam decided she was much too tired to continue working. As she began to put her things away, she was startled by Fred and his brother George stumbling into the common room. George headed up to the boys dormitory immediately, not even noticing Sam, but Fred, his eyes glinting darkly, made his way to her as soon as he entered through the portrait hole.

"_Sammy_," he said by way of a greeting, his voice intimidating.

"What Fred?" Sam asked, trying to sound confident despite his imposing appearance. She was still sitting at the low table where she had been working and he was looming over her. Her voice wavered slightly.

"I had a very interesting conversation with Katie at dinner tonight," he replied, tiptoeing around what he actually wanted to say.

"About what?" Sam asked, suspicion ebbing into her voice.

"Oh, you know . . . things," Fred said delicately.

"Did you tell her about last night?" Sam asked, suddenly panicked. If Katie knew that Sam and Fred had kissed, she would certainly tell Alicia.

"Don't you worry about that, Sammy," Fred replied with a smile. "She just told me you had an interesting date with Rone." Sam breathed a sigh of relief.

"What does that matter to you?" she asked as she stood from the table.

"It doesn't," Fred replied airly. "I just didn't think you were the type of girl that went around kissing a new guy every day."

"Oh Jesus, Fred. Do I need to remind you that _you_ kissed _me_?"

"And your point?" Fred pressed petulantly.

"My point is that _I _didn't go around kissing anybody. You're the one with the indiscriminate lips." Fred gaped at her for a moment, trying to find a proper retort, but Sam simply shook her head and continued, "I don't know what it is you want from me, but you aren't going to get it so just drop it, alright? Besides," Sam added, her voice softening infinitesimally, "there's an awesome girl who actually does like you, for some odd reason, so why don't you go chasing after _her_ in the middle of the night?" Sam offered Fred a small smile before heading up to the girls dormitory, but not before she heard Fred murmur something she was sure wasn't meant for her ears.

"But I don't want her. I want you."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Alright guys, here's the next chapter! If you liked it, pleaseeee review and I promise the next update will be up super duper quickly!


	5. Impulse

**Chapter 5**

**Impulse**

Throughout the rest of the week, Sam could hear Fred's words replaying over and over again in her mind, and often at the most inconvenient times. She would be in the library trying to catch up on her work, and his voice would crop up. She would be eating dinner with her friends, and she'd remember what he'd said. More annoying than the tiny Fred Weasley that seemed to live inside Sam's head, however, was the real life Fred that liked to pop up just when Sam had thoroughly convinced herself that she didn't have any feelings for him whatsoever. The worst was during dinner on Thursday night. Angelina and Katie were discussing the plan for the next day's Quidditch practice while Alicia was talking to Sam about Fred. Sam was listening disinterestedly, trying not to get too involved in the conversation. As Alicia began to wonder aloud whether or not Fred was going to ask her out again, Sam noticed the Weasley twins heading toward the table. Sam put a finger to her lips, silencing Alicia just as Fred took a seat next to her, George sitting next to Sam.

"Hello," Fred said cheekily to Sam. She rolled her eyes in reply as Fred turned his attention to Alicia. "So, Alicia, what are you doing tomorrow after Quidditch practice?"

"Oh . . . I don't . . . nothing, I guess . . . why?" Alicia was turning bright red as she spoke.

"Because I think you and I should spend some time together, that's why." Fred fixed Alicia with a dazzling smile. Sam was beginning to feel her heart drop into the pit of her stomach.

"Of course! I thought after our last date that you wouldn't want to go out with me again!" Alicia squeaked in reply. Sam sighed in annoyance and stood up from the table.

"I think I left something in the common room. I'll be right back." Alicia nodded in her general direction, indicating that she had heard her but that she had absolutely no intention of leaving her current conversation. Sam told Angelina and Katie where she was going before she left, and with another annoyed sigh, she departed. She was halfway up the stairs to the Gryffindor common room when she was stopped by Fred's twin, George.

"Hey, Sam, hold on a second," he called after her. Sam slowed and turned, surprised he was talking to her. She and George hadn't really had any interaction except through Fred.

"What's up?"

"Are you alright?" George asked. The concern in his voice was so genuine that Sam couldn't help but smile.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Your brother's an ass though." George chuckled softly and shook his head knowingly.

"He does sort of have that reputation," George said in agreement. "Can I ask you something though?"

"Sure."

"If you like him, why don't you just tell him? You realize that's the only way he'll stop playing these ridiculous games." Sam's cheeks flushed indignantly at the suggestion.

"Because I _don__'__t_ like him, that's why. Just because he gets off on irritating me and I'm dumb enough to be irritated by him in the first place doesn't mean I like him."

"Whatever you say, Nimbus. I'm going to head back to dinner." He turned to go but added before he did, "You know, he's right . . . you are different." Sam stood on the stairs a moment, taken aback by what George had said. She shook her head and continued up the stairs to the Gryffindor common room.

Sam was lazily lying in front of the fire in the common room when Angelina, Alicia, and Katie emerged through the portrait hole, talking excitedly about Alicia's date with Fred. Sam sighed and remained on the floor. _Maybe__if__you__stay__absolutely__still__ – _

"Sam! Can you believe it?" Alicia squealed as she plopped down on the floor next to her. Angelina and Katie sat down on either side of Alicia.

"Of course I can, Alicia. You're amazing. Fred would be an idiot not to date you." Sam smiled weakly at her ecstatic friend.

"Well, I'm going to go to bed. We have charms early tomorrow, and then practice, and then . . ." Alicia, too excited to finish her own sentence, sighed romantically as she stood up and walked to the girls' dormitory.

"I've got to go too. Told Lee I'd help him finish his charms' homework." Katie stood up and stretched as Sam and Angelina eyed her suspiciously. "What? I'm serious." As Katie left the common room to find Lee, Angelina laid down next to Sam.

"It's so stupid," Sam exclaimed suddenly.

"What's stupid?" Angelina asked, yawning.

"This whole . . . Fred and Alicia thing. He's such a jerk. He's just going to end up hurting her."

"I don't think you give Fred enough credit," Angelina retorted. "He may be a bit of an idiot to get laughs, but he really is a decent guy."

"He kissed me."

"I mean, he honestly – wait, WHAT?" Angelina sat up, shock etched across her face. Sam looked at her friend sheepishly from the floor. "When did this happen and why did I not hear about it?"

Sam propped herself up on her elbows and sighed heavily. "It was a few nights ago, when he came to find me in the library. I was mad at him and one thing led to another and . . . we kissed."

"Wait, as in, you kissed him back?" Angelina asked, absolutely flabbergasted.

"Not really. He kissed me first. It's just . . . confusing I guess." Sam sighed and fiddled with a strand of her hair anxiously.

"Well do you like him?"

"Of course not. I can hardly stand him. He just frustrates me and my brain has a hard time separating the frustration from . . . other things."

"Other things?" Angelina prompted.

"Oh, I don't know, just that I haven't kissed anyone in a while so I went a little haywire. Look," Sam continued before Angelina could say anything else, "I'm not going to let it go anywhere because I know Alicia is crazy about the guy and, like I've said a thousand times, I can't stand him, so let's just drop it, ok?"

"Fine," Angelina replied huffily. "I just don't know how you're going to avoid talking to him tomorrow at Quidditch practice." Sam opened her mouth to protest, but before she could Angelina interrupted. "You're going, Nimbus. I could use a pair of eyes in the stands and you owe me, especially since I'm going to be keeping your little secret." Sam sighed and flopped back onto the floor.

"I knew coming to a school with boys would be trouble."

The next day, Sam awoke to her friends getting ready for class, Alicia talking animatedly about her upcoming date with Fred. Sam groaned and pulled her pillow over her head, not keen on spending the day hearing about how excited Alicia was. Just as she was beginning to fall back asleep, Katie yanked Sam's pillow away. "Get up, lazy or you'll be late for class." Sam mumbled incoherently and attempted to pull her covers over her head, but was deterred by Unna who had commandeered the blankets for herself in the middle of the night.

"Come on Sam, it's Friday! Get up," Alicia chirped happily as she ran a brush through her hair. Sam begrudgingly rolled out of bed and changed into her uniform.

"I don't want to go to class. As a matter of fact, I think we should boycott," Sam said grumpily as she pulled on her socks.

"You're so nasty in the morning, Sam," Katie observed cheerfully. Sam glared at her as she pulled her long brown hair into a messy knot on top of her head. "What? Only joking." Sam stuck her tongue out at Katie and threw a pair of balled up socks at her.

"We better get moving if we want to get breakfast," Angelina said as she put the finishing touches on her makeup.

"You just want to get there early so you can talk to _George_," Katie said, batting her eyelashes flirtatiously. Angelina rolled her eyes, snatched her bag off the floor, and headed down the stairs from the dormitory, Sam, Katie, and Alicia following. As the four of them entered the Great Hall, Sam was stopped by Sebastian.

"Morning, Samantha," he said smoothly, smiling lazily at her.

"Oh, good morning," Sam replied, taken a bit off guard by his sudden greeting.

"Would you like to join me for breakfast?" Sam glanced at her friends, who looked back at her curiously.

"Uh, sure, why not." Sam shrugged at Angelina, who was looking at her suspiciously. Sam followed Sebastian to the Slytherin table and sat down next to him and a Slytherin girl she had never met. Sebastian reintroduced her to the boys she had already met in Hogsmeade and introduced the girl sitting next to her as Amanda. Sam smiled somewhat awkwardly at the girl, who didn't seem too keen on having her there at all. Sam nibbled quietly on a piece of toast as Sebastian chatted easily with his friends. As the conversation continued, Sam's eyes wandered to the Gryffindor table. She saw Katie, Alicia, and Angelina huddled together whispering intently in their usual spots, and she saw the Weasley twins and Lee Jordan occupying their usual roost. When she allowed her eyes to linger on the twins for just a moment, she caught Fred's eye. He shot her a look of pure venom. She opened her mouth in surprise, but was distracted by Fred's glare when Sebastian casually slinked his arm around her waist. Sam jumped slightly at the sudden contact, and was brought back to the conversation at the Slytherin table.

"I was just telling Frederick that it's nice to see you away from the Gryffindor table for once," Sebastian said. The boy sitting directly across from Sebastian offered Sam a half nod and returned to his food.

"Oh, well," Sam replied awkwardly, wishing very much that Sebastian would let go of her. "Um, I agree . . . it was nice, but I have to get going . . . class and all that." Sam flashed Sebastian a quick smile and stood up from the table. Sebastian stood with her and again, snaked his arm around her waist. This time, however, his intention wasn't to converse with her. He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers powerfully. For a moment, Sam was utterly and completely shocked. A boy was kissing her in the Great Hall. In front of her friends. _In__front__of__Fred,_ she thought wickedly. Sensing that this was her moment to get revenge on Fred for the kiss in Gryffindor tower, Sam pressed her body against Sebastian's, her hands finding his way into his hair while his arms wrapped around her tightly. She pulled away after a few seconds and smiled at him coyly. "Thanks for inviting me to sit here today. I had fun."

"Have a good day then," Sebastian said simply, astonished. Sam flashed him a devilish smile before returning to her friends.

"What was that all about?" Katie asked, dumbfounded. Sam simply shook her head and left the Great Hall with her friends, but not without a backwards glance at Fred whom, she was satisfied to see, was fuming.

Charms class passed in a blur of whispering and note-passing between Sam, Angelina, Katie, and Alicia. Sam, who was intent upon not talking about what had happened at breakfast, was getting frustrated with all of the questions and was utterly relieved when Professor Flitwick dismissed the class for the day. "Thanks to you three, I can honestly say I have no idea what Flitwick was talking about," Sam said with a sigh as the girls climbed the stairs to Gryffindor tower.

"Well it's not _our_ fault you were kissing Sebastian Rone at breakfast," Katie responded with a roll of her eyes.

"It's not mine either!" Sam exclaimed indignantly. "He kissed me!"

"Yeah but this time you kissed him back," Angelina mumbled. Sam shot her a warning look and Angelina quickly changed the subject. "We have to get ready for practice. As soon as we get up to the common room, I want everyone changed and ready to head down to the pitch." Sam, having forgotten that Angelina was dragging her to practice, groaned in protest at the reminder. "Oh Sam, you'll have fun watching. Plus, you'll be able to tell me who was flying like rubbish in case I don't notice."

Once the girls reached their dormitory, Katie, Alicia, and Angelina swapped their uniforms for their Quidditch robes while Sam changed hers for a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. "We'll meet the boys in the common room and head down from there," Angelina said as she led the way out of the dormitory. Once they reached the landing, they came upon Fred and George Weasley, and the last member of the Hogwarts Quidditch team whom Sam had only met once before in passing, Harry Potter. The group walked out of Gryffindor tower and onto the grounds. It was a crisp, cool, September day and Sam huddled into her sweatshirt to keep warm. When they reached the pitch, Sam took her place in the stands to watch the practice. As she watched the incomplete Gryffindor team practice (Oliver Wood, previously the keeper, had finished his seventh year), Sam found herself wishing she could fly. Despite her father's numerous attempts to get Sam on a broom and keep her airborne, she had always found she was clumsy and awkward off the ground. Although her father told Sam it wasn't an issue to him, she always felt that he must have been a bit disappointed that his only child couldn't handle a broom to save her life. Sam couldn't help but begrudgingly admire Fred. He seemed so comfortable perched on his broom, high above the ground. He was an effortless flier, and a natural athlete, and even though he annoyed her to no end, she spent the remainder of the practice watching him.

After about an hour, practice ended and Sam was walking back up to the castle with the girls. Alicia had been talking nonstop about her impending date with Fred, and Sam was quickly getting sick of it. "Oh shit, I think I left my bag in the change rooms," Katie exclaimed, suddenly interrupting Alicia's reverie. Eager to jump at any opportunity that got her away from the conversation, Sam volunteered to head back down to the pitch to get it for her. Before Katie even had time to thank her, Sam was on her way back. As she walked, Sam was grappling with the fact that, yes, although she loathed him and despised even the most innocent thought about him, she may be jealous that Fred was pursuing Alicia.

She reached the change rooms and saw Katie's bag lying beneath one of the long benches in the middle of the room. As she went to grab it off the floor, she realized she wasn't alone. Fred was standing on the opposite side of the room changing out of his Quidditch uniform. Sam quickly hid herself behind the half open door and watched him quietly, not wanting him to think she had come back to talk to him. Sam willed herself not to look at Fred while he pulled on his jeans, his bare torso still exposed, but she couldn't help but admire his strong, athletic body. She felt herself becoming agitated, her cheeks flushing, her body responding to the sight of him. She bit her lip in a subconscious effort to steady her nerves. Forcing herself to tear her eyes away from Fred, she felt her legs shake slightly. She leaned heavily against the door, forgetting that it was open, causing it to slam into the opposing wall with an impressive BANG. Sam felt herself flush scarlet as Fred wheeled around, startled by the noise. "Oh, um, sorry, I was just . . . getting Katie's bag . . . didn't know you were here - " Fred looked at her curiously, as if he wanted to say something, but he simply shook his head and laughed.

"Been watching me change, Nimbus?" he asked playfully as he pulled a black t-shirt over his head.

"N-no, of course not!" Sam protested defensively as she snatched Katie's bag off of the floor.

"Relax, I'm kidding," he said with a crooked smile. Sam rolled her eyes and turned to go. "Hold on, I'll walk with you. It's getting dark outside." Fred slung his school bag over his shoulder and the two of them left the change room together. Sam, her heart still pounding after having seen Fred nearly completely naked, was staying silent as not to say anything incriminating. "Can I ask you a question?" Fred asked after the two of them had emerged into the cool evening and had walked for a bit. Sam nodded silently. "What was that all about at breakfast?"

"What was that all about at dinner last night?" Sam snapped back. Fred frowned at her.

"I dunno, to be honest. I'm not going to say impulsiveness isn't one of my flaws . . . but seriously, Samantha - " Sam looked up at him. She couldn't remember him using her full name before. " – I just want you to realize what you're getting into with Rone."

"You've been saying cryptic things like that for the past two weeks, and I'd really like to know what they're about," Sam demanded, allowing a bit of the anger she'd felt the night before ebb into her voice.

"No need to get angry, Sammy. It's just that you're new around here and I don't want you getting involved with something you can't handle," he said. There was a strange strength in the way he was speaking to her now. Sam didn't like it.

"Either tell me what you're talking about or drop it, Fred," Sam warned.

"It's just an incident he had last year with another girl. I don't know all the details, but from what I _have_ heard, he was a bit too . . . aggressive with her." Sam shuddered at the suggestion. It reminded her of her one and only relationship and the reason it failed. "I don't want you to think I'm telling you this for any other reason than me warning you," he added.

"I can take care of myself," Sam replied, perhaps a bit too defensively than she intended. Fred's eyes narrowed in frustration and he stopped mid stride.

"You just don't get it, do you?" he asked her angrily. Sam stopped and looked at him. He was wearing the same expression he wore when he saw Sam and Sebastian together. "You're just so spoiled, so sheltered . . . of course you don't get it. You don't think anything or anyone out there could possibly be bad or could possibly hurt you. You're just a stupid little girl."

Sam felt tears stinging in the corners of her eyes. "You think you know me so well, but you don't know me at all. Not if that's what you think about me. You don't understand anything." Sam turned to go, ignoring Fred calling her name as she headed into the castle.

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> Sorry about the long delay in updating! School/life got in the way for a bit, but I promise that updates will come more frequently now that things have calmed down. :) Please, please, please review! And thank you for all of the lovely reviews/favs/alerts I've already received!


	6. Smashed

**Chapter 6**

**Smashed**

Sam stormed into the girls' dormitory and saw Angelina, Katie, and Alicia all sitting on Alicia's bed, gabbing happily and petting Unna who was sleeping comfortably between them. Sam tossed Katie's bag on the floor. "Have fun on your date tonight," Sam snapped without provocation before flopping onto her bed and drawing the curtains. Sam buried her face in her pillow and cried silently as she heard Angelina quietly asking Katie and Alicia to leave. Sam heard the two of them walk to the dormitory door and close it before Angelina slid open the curtain gently and sat on the foot of Sam's bed.

"So, what's wrong?" Angelina asked kindly. Sam groaned into her pillow pathetically in response. "C'mon Nimbus, you can tell me." Sam rolled over onto her back, her brown eyes shining with tears. Angelina tsked at her maternally.

"Fred is . . . he's . . ." Sam swallowed the rest of her words as she felt fresh tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

"What happened?" Angelina asked. Sam sat up and hugged her knees to her chest.

"He just thinks he's got me all figured out. He thinks because he's known me for a few weeks he can tell me who I should talk to and what I should do and just . . ." Sam sighed and cocked her head to the side, toying anxiously with a strand of hair that had come loose from behind her ear.

"Why do you let him get to you?" Angelina asked, her voice laced with concern. Sam thought for a moment and finally shrugged. _Because I like him_, she thought to herself. "Well," Angelina continued, "it'll all be ok. You two are still just getting used to each other and, if I do say so myself, you're both a bit stubborn and it takes some time for two stubborn people to get along." Angelina smiled at her friend and brushed a strand of Sam's hair out of her face.

"I think you're right . . ." Sam sighed.

"So do you want to head down to dinner with all of us before Alicia goes on her date?"

"No, I'm not hungry," Sam lied, not divulging that she simply didn't want to see Fred yet.

"Alright. I'll try to bring back something for you in case you change your mind." Angelina smiled warmly at Sam and headed out of the dormitory, leaving Sam alone with her thoughts. Unna, having leapt off of Alicia's bed after the girls left, climbed up next to Sam, resting her head on her leg. Sam scratched her behind her ears, letting her mind wander. She started to doze off when she heard a light tapping at the window. She sat up and saw Salem sitting on the sill, a letter tied around his leg. Sam walked to the window and opened it, Salem fluttering in and landing on Sam's shoulder. He nuzzled her cheek affectionately as Sam untied the letter, seeing Adri's response to the infamous letter Sam had written two weeks ago which Fred had blackmailed her with.

_Sam,_

_ This Fred guy sounds interesting. Dreaming about him? Definitely interesting. Don't write it off too quickly, as we both know you're used to. Sorry for the late response. The semester just started and it's already crazy. Krista and Megan were devastated when they found out you weren't coming back. They're reading this over my shoulder and telling me to tell you they miss you and that they're going to visit over the summer. We all love you lots, and hope you're having fun. Write back soon.  
><em>

_Love,_

_Adri_

Sam had found a quill and was working on her reply when she heard yet another tap at the window and saw a large eagle owl sitting on the sill this time. Sam reached out and pulled the letter off of its leg and the owl took flight immediately after. Sam noticed that the letter was addressed to her and was surprised to see that it was from Sebastian.

_Samantha,_

_We're having a party in the Slytherin common room tonight and I'd love for you to come. If you'd like to go, meet me at the entrance to the Great Hall at 9 PM._

_Sebastian_

Sam checked her watch. It was a quarter to nine. Deciding that staying in the dormitory all night while all of her friends were going to be doing something didn't sound like her idea of a good time, Sam began rummaging through her trunk for something to wear. She settled on a denim mini skirt and a low cut polo shirt that showed off her body perfectly. She slid into a pair of sparkly ballet flats and quickly applied her makeup. She twirled her wand around a few strands of her hair and used a spell Adri had taught her the previous summer to put some loose curls into her hair. After checking her appearance in the mirror, Sam scratched Salem's neck and rubbed Unna's belly before heading out of the dormitory and into the common room. She saw Fred sitting near the fire reading, waiting for Alicia to return from dinner. He looked up as Sam began to walk past him, his eyes roving hungrily up and down her body. "Going out, Sammy?" Fred asked. His tone was harsh as he was still angry at her from their earlier conversation, but he couldn't hide the inklings of desire that crept into his voice.

"Going out with Sebastian," she replied, hardly slowing her stride as she passed him. Fred opened his mouth to reply, but Sam was already climbing out of the portrait hole before he had time to say anything, leaving him feeling completely flustered.

As Sam walked to the Great Hall, she noticed with satisfaction that she was earning a lot of looks from the guys she passed. Usually not one to worry too much about her appearance, Sam was feeling surprisingly confident and attractive. When she reached the Great Hall, she saw Sebastian standing outside with a few of his friends. As soon as he saw Sam, he looked at her with the same starved look that Fred had fixed her with before she left. Sam smiled at him seductively and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "You look amazing," he said with a sly smile. Sebastian wrapped his arm around her waist and the group turned to head toward the Slytherin dungeon. Before they had gone too far, Sam heard Alicia calling her name.

"Sam? Wow, you look incredible! Where are you going?" she asked as Sam turned toward her.

"Thanks! Just going to hang out with Sebastian tonight in the Slytherin common room."

"Oh, alright! See you later!" Alicia turned to go but Sam stopped her.

"Hey, I'm sorry I snapped at you earlier. Guess I was just feeling a bit stressed. Have fun tonight on your date, ok?" Alicia grinned at Sam before heading once again for Gryffindor tower as Sam walked with Sebastian to the Slytherin dungeon.

The Slytherin common room was completely different from the Gryffindor common room. It was much darker and colder in a way, populated by large, high-backed, black leather chairs and green couches. Sam imagined that it would probably have seemed much more intimidating had it not been filled with Slytherins all drinking and talking together cheerfully. Almost as soon as they had arrived, someone had supplied Sebastian and his friends with drinks. Sam was handed a clear glass full of a smoking liquid. "Bottoms up," Sebastian said with a wink as he drained his glass. Sam did the same, coughing as the taste of Firewhiskey and something she couldn't quite identify hit the back of her throat. Just as she was recovering from her first drink, Sebastian was handing her another. Sam nursed this one much more slowly, the alcohol already making her head swim. Sebastian introduced her to his friends she hadn't met yet. Sam was surprised to find that, after a few drinks, the Slytherins were much warmer and more welcoming than when she had first met them. As the night wore on, Sam conversed easily with a group of sixth year Slytherin girls, all of whom were informing Sam that Sebastian was crazy about her. Sam felt herself blush deeply, although she wasn't sure if this was because of what she had been told or the copious amounts of Firewhiskey she'd been consuming.

"Feeling alright?" Sebastian asked her after seeing Sam stumble as she was looking for a place to sit.

"Mhmm. Think I'm just a bit . . ." Sam trailed off, searching for the right word.

"Drunk?" Sebastian supplied, chuckling softly. Sam nodded and giggled. "Well, we could go lie down for a bit in my room," Sebastian suggested. Sam nodded again, resting her head on his shoulder. Sebastian wrapped his arm around Sam's waist and led her into the Slytherin boy's dormitory. He laid her down on one of the large, black four poster beds, leaned down, and pressed his lips to hers. Sam wrapped her arms around him, pulling him onto the bed with her. Sebastian eagerly began kissing his way up Sam's neck and again found her lips. Sam moaned quietly, opening her mouth while Sebastian's lips were on hers. He slid his tongue into her mouth as his hands began searching all over her body. As his hands began to travel over Sam's flat stomach and under her shirt, Sam's clouded judgment became momentarily clear. She pulled away from Sebastian and pushed his hand away.

"I think I might be a bit too drunk for that," she said with a lopsided smile. As he was above her, Sam looked at Sebastian. His dark eyes were fiery, passionate, and his handsome features looked sharp, almost dangerous, in the low light of the dormitory. Sebastian, too, was watching Sam closely. Her dark eyes were softened from the alcohol and she looked so helpless beneath him . . . so trusting and vulnerable. He kissed her more fiercely this time, but kept his hands to himself. After a few more minutes, though, Sebastian's hands were finding their way over Sam's body yet again, this time up her skirt. As Sam tried to protest, Sebastian pressed his lips to hers even more intensely. Sam felt herself growing anxious as she tried to pull herself away. Just as Sebastian was about to find his way under Sam's underwear, the door opened. Sebastian sat up off of Sam, seeing another sixth year boy standing in the doorway.

"Someone said they heard Snape coming," the boy said, looking a bit embarrassed at walking in on the two of them. Sebastian nodded, sighed in frustration, and rolled off of the bed. Sam was still lying on top of the comforter, a bit shocked and feeling very nauseous.

"You better go, Samantha. Don't want you getting in trouble." Sebastian offered her his hand and helped her off the bed. He walked her to the entrance to the dormitory and kissed her on the cheek before sending her out. Sam, still very inebriated, felt disoriented and a bit upset that Sebastian wasn't walking her back to Gryffindor common room, as well as feeling completely shocked about what had occurred in his bed. As she was making her way out of the dungeon, she nearly ran right into Fred.

"Why are you down here?" she asked, surprised.

"Alicia told me you were down here with Rone . . . just wanted to make sure you were alright . . ." Fred was looking at her with concern. Sam nodded, temporarily ignoring her instinct to snap at him. Sam stumbled forward as she attempted to walk up the stairs out of the dungeon. Fred wrapped a strong arm around her waist and supported her weight. "C'mon Sammy, we need to get back up to the common room before someone finds us." Although Sam wasn't very heavy, she could hardly stand on her own two feet, making the journey up to the common room an extremely laborious one for Fred. Just as the two of them emerged at the top of the stairs coming out of the dungeon, they were greeted by Professor Snape.

"Going somewhere, Weasley?" he asked coldly. Fred didn't answer. "Follow me," Snape hissed, sweeping through the dungeons to his office. Once they were in Snape's office, Sam and Fred sat in front of Snape's desk. Sam had trouble keeping her eyes open. "Miss Nimbus, have you been drinking?" Snape asked icily. Sam's cheeks flushed a deep pink as she nodded. Snape rummaged for something in his desk and emerged with a small silver flask. "Drink," he instructed simply. Sam drank from the flask, an icy potion hitting her lips. She suddenly felt her head clear and stomach settle. "Now that we're all coherent, I think I should retrieve Professor McGonagall to handle your punishments." Snape smiled icily at the pair of them and exited his office.

"You shouldn't have come looking for me . . ." Sam muttered to Fred abashedly once Snape had left.

"And left you with Rone instead? He obviously was taking great care of you, letting you walk back to the common room alone in that state," Fred answered. Now that Sam was sober, his stinging tone from earlier in the evening had returned. "You really are an idiot, Nimbus. Can't take care of yourself, going to the Slytherin common room alone; have you done anything else completely reckless that I've missed?" Sam didn't reply. White hot anger was beginning to bubble in the pit of her stomach. She hadn't asked Fred to play hero and come rescue her, so why was he so mad? After what felt like an eternity of sitting in silence waiting for Professor McGonagall, the door of Snape's office opened as she walked in and sat behind the desk.

"Well, this is certainly not the best way to start the weekend," she began, looking furious. "Mr. Weasley, Professor Snape has told me that he found you out of bed with Miss Nimbus. What were you doing out of bed?"

"I was looking for Samantha, Professor," he answered.

"Very well. Miss Nimbus, Professor Snape said that he found you intoxicated when he saw you with Mr. Weasley. Is this true?"

"Yes, Professor," Sam answered meekly. She had never been in trouble with a teacher before and it terrified her.

"I think it goes without saying that I am utterly shocked to hear this and disappointed that a student from my house was found in this state. Fifty points from Gryffindor, and you will serve detention next Saturday in my office, Miss Nimbus. Mr. Weasley, ten points from Gryffindor will be taken for being out of bed and you, too, will serve detention with Miss Nimbus. Now, the two of you get to bed this instant. I don't want to hear of an incident like this from either of you ever again." The two of them got to their feet and headed out of the dungeon and up to the common room.

"I bet Rone is feeling plenty pleased with himself," Fred said as they walked to Gryffindor tower.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, her voice dangerous.

"Oh, you know, get a helpless girl drunk, do what you want with her. That's what I mean. How far did you let him go, Nimbus?" Fred asked cruelly. Sam stopped in her tracks and stared at Fred, incredulous. "Don't look so shocked, Sammy. I figured you had a bit of a slutty side to you. I just didn't think it would only take a few sips of Firewhiskey to bring it out." For the second time that night, Sam's eyes began to fill with tears at Fred's words. Fred plunged on recklessly, flinging his words at her like weapons. "Upset that I have you figured out? That I know what kind of girl you _really_ are? You're easy, Nimbus." Fred immediately regretted being so brutal. Instead of lashing out at him angrily as he had expected, Sam simply looked up at him with an immense amount of pain in her deep brown eyes.

"That's not what happened at all . . ." she said through her tears "I didn't want him to . . . just . . . that's not . . ." her words trailed off as she felt a lump form in her throat.

"He did something to you . . ." Fred said, his voice softening, his face conscience-stricken.

"Not really . . . he stopped when I asked him for the most part, but - " Sam stopped her explanation abruptly, anger filling her once more. "I don't need to explain this to you. You think you know me so well? Go ahead and think what you want. Think I threw myself at him and that I'm easy. I don't care anymore, Fred. These past three weeks you've been playing games with me and I'm sick of it, so you know what? You stay out of my way and I'll stay out of yours because, to be totally honest, I hate you, Fred Weasley. I think you're disgusting." And with that, Sam whipped around and headed for Gryffindor tower alone, her eyes still stinging with tears.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note<strong>: Sorry for the long delay between chapters, but good news! I've already got chapter 7 mostly written, so expect it sometime this week! Please keep the reviews coming! They totally brighten my day. :)


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